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Ohio’s Minimum Wage Changes for 2014
The State of Ohio recently announced minimum wage increases scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2014. The new rates are only applicable to employers with annual gross receipts totaling more than $292,000 per year. For non-tipped employees, the rate will jump from $7.85 to $7.95 per hour; for tipped employees, $3.93 to $3.98 per hour.Again, this change does not affect smaller companies— those with gross receipts of $292,000 or less per year. Note that, by contrast, the increase implemented in 2013 was applicable to employers with annual gross receipts of more than $288,000 per year.
Importantly, the current increase also excludes employees under the age of sixteen, regardless of the employer’s gross receipts. Employees who are under sixteen years old or work for a small employer need only be paid the federal minimum wage, which is currently $7.25 per hour for non-tipped employees and $2.13 per hour for tipped employees (so long as their base rate plus tips equals the minimum wage for non-tipped employees).
The changes to Ohio’s minimum wage are the result of an amendment to the Ohio Constitution passed by voters in 2006. This amendment tied minimum wages to the rate of inflation as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for a period of twelve months prior to each September. From September 2012 to August 2013 inflation rose 1.5%, hence the corresponding increases in minimum wage.
A new poster can be found on the State of Ohio’s website: http://www.com.ohio.gov/documents/dico_2014Minimumwageposter.pdf
Should you have any questions regarding the new minimum wage or wage and hour issues in general, please do not hesitate to contact Colleen Koehler, Lynn Schonberg or Ryan Neumeyer at 216-447-1551.