Florida’s $15 minimum wage: is your payroll up to date?

Florida’s minimum wage reached $15 an hour on September 30, 2026. Before approving your next payroll, check the hours worked from that date, especially if the pay period started in September and ended in October.

The increase is part of the schedule in Florida’s Constitution. For covered employees, the new minimum applies from September 30, even if payday comes later.

Take a look at a payroll preview

Ask your payroll provider to show you how the change appears for one affected employee. A useful question is:

Please show the hourly rates applied before and from September 30, 2026, including any pay period that crosses that date.

Here’s a hypothetical payroll preview for a covered, non-tipped employee previously earning $14. The example has 40 straight-time hours in one workweek and no overtime:

The date the employee worked each hour determines which minimum applies. Payday doesn’t move the change to a different date. The $582 is base wages before deductions; employer taxes and other costs are separate.

Compare the preview with the employee’s time records. Confirm the effective date entered in the system and the rate used for the hours on each side of it. A general reply that “Florida payroll is updated” leaves those details unanswered.

Check the employees earning at or near the old minimum first. Employees already earning above $15 may not need the same adjustment; whether you change their pay is a separate decision.

What the extra dollar means for your budget

For a simple example, take a covered, non-tipped employee who previously earned $14 and works 40 straight-time hours in a week entirely after the change:

($15 − $14) × 40 hours = $40 more in base wages for that week.

Five employees on that same example schedule would add $200 in weekly base wages. Payroll taxes, overtime, benefits, and other adjustments would need to be added to your own budget.

Use the hours your employees actually work. A 20-hour schedule and a 40-hour schedule will produce different costs, and this calculation won’t answer an overtime or employee-classification question.

If your employees receive tips

The example above uses non-tipped wages. The current state poster (PDF) lists a minimum cash wage of $11.98 an hour for tipped employees, in addition to tips. Before using that rate, ask your payroll adviser to confirm whether your business can take the tip credit and how to check the employee’s wage-and-tip total against the applicable requirements.

FloridaCommerce’s minimum-wage page has the current notice and posters in English, Spanish, and Haitian Creole. Use the 2026–2027 poster, which covers September 30, 2026 through December 31, 2027, rather than an older poster showing $14.

Replace the old notices, too

Download the current state poster and replace the outdated copy. You can also download the federal minimum-wage poster from the Labor Department, which offers a free checker for federal workplace posters.

Keep the payroll provider’s explanation with the calculation you reviewed. If a rate or calculation looks wrong, get it resolved before approving the payroll run.