What is minimum wage in Florida? Bill would reduce it for some workers

• Florida's minimum wage will increase to $15 an hour on September 30, 2026, due to a 2020 constitutional amendment.
• A proposed bill in the Florida Legislature could allow some interns and pre-apprentices to waive their right to the state minimum wage.
• After 2026, Florida's minimum wage will be adjusted annually for inflation based on the Consumer Price Index.

Minimum wage in Florida will go up again this year to $15 an hour and there it will stay, subject to inflation, thanks to the "Fair Wage" constitutional amendment voters narrowly passed in 2020.

However, a bill that failed in 2025 to reduce minimum wage for some workers is back and moving through the Florida Legislature.

Under HB 221, sponsored by Rep. Ryan Chamberlin, R-Belleview, workers in internship or pre-apprenticeship programs could waive their right to earn the state minimum wage. The bill passed through its first Florida House committee on Jan. 28. A similar Senate bill, SB 1412, from Sen. Jonathan Martin, R-Fort Myers, has yet to move out of its first committee.

Chamberlin said he wants to open up more opportunities for young people to get work experience and learn trades.

“This is not cutting the minimum wage in Florida,” Chamberlin told the House Industries and Professional Activities Subcommittee. “It opens up unique opportunities that don’t exist.”

“This isn’t about creating opportunities, this is about pushing people into poverty,” said Rep. Angie Nixon, D-Jacksonville, who announced her run for U.S. Senate earlier this month. Democrats argued that the bill would harm people who still had to live amid rising prices and said it could depress wages for all workers.

The measure was amended to put hard caps on how long a company can employ someone under the program: up to 252 days for an adult and up to 126 for a worker under the age of 18. Parents would also be required to sign the waiver for minor workers.

Here's what to know about minimum wage in Florida.

What is the minimum wage in Florida?

As of Sept. 30, 2025, Florida's minimum wage is $14 an hour for non-tipped employees and $10.98 for tipped employees.

That's nearly twice the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour, which has remained at that level since 2009 despite inflation and dramatic increases in the cost of living.

Minimum wage in Florida will go up another dollar on Sept. 30, 2026. Then it will be $15 an hour for non-tipped employees and $11.98 for tipped employees.

What happens to Florida's minimum wage after 2026?

After 2026, the state Agency for Workforce Innovation will calculate an increased minimum wage rate based on the rate of inflation over the previous 12 months, using the federal Consumer Price Index, as the state was previously doing since 2004.

Under the constitutional amendment voters approved, starting in 2027 the new rate will be published on Sept. 30 each year and will go into effect Jan. 1 the following year.

How is minimum wage for tipped employees calculated in Florida?

Employers of tipped employees must pay their employees minimum wage, but they can count the tips the employees receive toward it, up to the maximum of $3.02. That's the allowable tip credit established in the Fair Labor Standards Act of 2003.

So, the direct wage employers must pay tipped employees is the current state minimum wage, minus $3.02.

What is the federal minimum wage?

The federal minimum wage has been $7.25 an hour since 2009.

Most states, including Florida, have established higher minimum wages and 22 states are raised theirs in 2026.

On Jan. 1, the minimum wage increased in 19 states and 49 cities and counties. In 60 of these jurisdictions, the minimum wage will hit or exceed $15 an hour for some or all employers, and in three states and 40 localities the minimum wage will be at least $17 an hour for some or all employers, according to an annual report from the National Employment Law Project, an employee advocacy group.

Later this year, four more states (including Florida) and 22 local jurisdictions will raise their minimum wage, with 25 of these areas implementing a minimum wage of $15 an hour or more for some or all employers and one state and 17 local jurisdictions establishing or exceeding a minimum wage of $17 an hour for certain employers.

Florida's minimum wage was first established in 2004 by another voter-approved amendment "to provide a decent and healthy life for them and their families, that protects their employers from unfair low-wage competition, and that does not force them to rely on taxpayer-funded public services in order to avoid economic hardship."

Which states are raising their minimum wage in 2026?

Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, Virginia and Washington raised their minimum wage on Jan. 1, according to the report.

Later this year, Alaska, Florida and Oregon will do the same. California will enact a separate new minimum wage for health care workers.

Does everyone get at least minimum wage?

There are certain occupations and situations where the Department of Labor allows exemptions to the federal minimum wage law and employees may be paid less, including farm workers, executive, administrative and professional employees. commissioned sales employees, seasonal or recreational establishment workers, minors under certain circumstances, employees with disabilities under certain situations, employees of enterprises with an annual gross income of less than $50,000, and more.

What is the living wage in Florida?

The minimum wage is different from a living wage, however, which tries to calculate how much a person needs to earn per hour to afford the necessities — housing, childcare, health care, food, etc. — where they live.

According to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's (MIT) living wage calculator, the living wage in Florida as of February 2025 is $23.41 an hour for one adult with no children, $38.72 for an adult with one child, $47.53 for an adult with two children and $59.64 for an adult with three children.

C. A. Bridges is a journalist for the USA TODAY Network-Florida's service journalism Connect team. You can get all of Florida’s best content directly in your inbox each weekday day by signing up for the free newsletter, Florida TODAY.

Gray Rohrer, USA TODAY NETWORK - Florida, contributed to this story.