Florida Minimum Wage Headed to $14 on Sept. 30

On September 30, Florida's annual minimum wage increase takes effect, adding another $1 per hour to the minimum wage. The minimum wage in Florida is currently $ 13.00 an hour for non-tipped employees and $9.98 for tipped employees. The increase will take it to $14 an hour for non-tipped employees and $10.98 for tipped employees.

In November 2020, Florida voters passed a constitutional amendment to increase the state’s minimum wage by $1 annually until it reaches $15 on September 30, 2026. The minimum wage will then increase annually based on the applicable consumer price index, or CPI-W, starting on Jan. 1, 2028.

The federal minimum wage remains stuck $7.25 per hour, where it has been since 2009, despite dramatic increases in the cost of living. The federal minimum wage also includes a lengthy list of exceptions for jobs that can pay less.

Florida's state 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."

Two bills in the 2025 Florida legislative session would have carved out exceptions to the state's minimum wage, allowing people working in apprenticeships, internships, or work-study programs to choose to work for less. However, both bills, SB 676 and HB 541, were postponed and withdrawn.