On April 1, 2010, the Nevada Labor Commissioner issued a Minimum Wage Annual Bulletin and a Daily Overtime Annual Bulletin to notify employers of the annual increase in Nevada’s minimum wage. The increase takes effect on July 1, 2010.
What is the change to Nevada’s minimum wage tiers?
As of July 1, 2010, Nevada’s minimum wage changes as follows:
Lower tier: $7.25 per hour for employees who are offered qualified health benefits
Upper tier: $8.25 per hour for all other employees
How does this impact Nevada’s daily overtime rates?
Under Nevada law, an employee who earns less than 1 ½ times the minimum wage is entitled to daily overtime for all hours worked over eight (8) in any workday.
Given the annual increase in the minimum wage, as of July 1, 2010, Nevada’s daily overtime rates increase as follows:
Lower tier: Employees making less than $10.875 per hour
Upper tier: Employees making less than $12.375 per hour
What about the increase to the federal minimum wage?
Absent a new federal law, there is no increase to the federal minimum wage this year, and it remains $7.25 an hour. As such, Nevada employers should use the minimum wage figures set forth above as of July 1, 2010.
Do I have to provide notice of these increases to my employees?
Yes. Nevada law requires that employers provide written notification of the rate adjustments to each employee.
What does the future hold?
The constitutional amendment which changed Nevada’s minimum wage in 2006 provides that the Nevada minimum wage rates “shall be adjusted by the amount of increases in the federal minimum wage over $5.15 per hour, or, if greater, by the cumulative increase in the cost of living.” The 2007 federal legislation signed by former President Bush to increase the federal minimum wage over the course of three years does not provide for any further increases to the federal minimum wage. In other words, 2009 was the final year for the federal minimum wage increase under that law. While President Obama promised during his campaign to raise the federal minimum wage to $9.50 an hour by 2011, it is unclear when and if this issue will actually resurface in Congress. Until then, additional increases to Nevada’s minimum wage should now seemingly be based only upon the cost of living.
For more information, employers may wish to consult the following references:
