Overtime and Tips: How Do Florida Overtime Laws Work?

Tipped workers are an essential part of the service and hospitality industries. These workers include servers, bartenders, bussers, and baristas. These jobs keep these workers busy, often requiring them to work overtime. The question becomes: are tipped workers eligible for overtime pay? The answer is yes, but the rules differ from employees who don’t receive tips. 

The qualifications and calculations for overtime in Florida can be confusing for many workers in the state, including overtime pay for tipped employees. The federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) is a key employment law with detailed language to protect employees and guarantee payment of wages for all the hours an employee is rightfully due, including server overtime pay. Being informed about common Florida overtime law questions such as “How does overtime work?” and “How is overtime paid in Florida?” is important for employees to ensure they are receiving fair wages for the hours they work.

For more than 30 years, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A. has represented employees throughout Florida who were not paid their entitled overtime. We are dedicated exclusively to employment law, giving our attorneys decades of experience litigating against employers of all sizes. Contact us for a free, confidential case evaluation.

Florida Overtime Laws: Do Tipped Employees Qualify for Overtime?

Florida overtime laws follow the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) mandates —those who qualify for overtime must be paid the overtime premium. If an employer violates the mandates of the FLSA, they can and should be held accountable for not paying their employee(s) overtime in Florida.

Do servers get paid overtime?

The short answer to that question is “yes.” Although servers and other types of employees who get tips do not get overtime paid the same way that other workers get paid. Typically, if someone is making, for example, $15 per hour and qualifies for overtime in Florida, all hours worked past 40 hours in one workweek would be paid time and a half. So, if the employee worked a total of 50 hours in one workweek, they would get paid $15 (regular rate) x 1.5 (OT rate) x 10 (OT hours worked) = $225 in overtime pay in Florida.

How do you calculate overtime in Florida if you’re a tipped employee?

Once you understand that, generally speaking, tipped employees are entitled to overtime pay in Florida, you need to know how to calculate it. The calculations for server overtime pay and other tipped employees are more complicated than the basic formula for other employees. Since the total pay rate for tipped employees is not consistent over time, it can be challenging. First, you must consider the hourly rate of pay you receive from your employer.

Understanding the Tip Credit in Florida

The standard minimum wage in Florida as of November 30, 2025, is $14.00 per hour. The server minimum wage in Florida is $10.98. Employers can count a portion of an employee’s tip, known as a “tip credit,” as part of the employee’s minimum wage. Florida law allows employers to take a maximum “tip credit” of $3.02 per hour. This assumes that the employee will be able to make up those wages with tips.

To calculate overtime pay for tipped employees, take the Florida minimum wage, currently $10.00, and multiply it by 1.5, which equals $15.00. After this, you subtract the tip credit. $15.00 – $3.02 = $11.98. Overtime pay for tipped employees (any hours worked over 40 in one workweek) should be at a minimum rate of $11.98.

Common Payroll Mistakes

As anyone who attended school knows, math can be hard. Math is an unavoidable part of our everyday lives, however. Unfortunately, math mistakes can be easy to make. This is certainly the case when it comes to calculating the correct pay for tipped employees. Payroll mistakes are all too common and can result in cash wages being reduced and minimum wages not being fully covered. Here are some common payroll mistakes seen in the service industry:

• Paying time-and-a-half on cash wages only – All non-exempt work hours need to be counted and documented fully; otherwise, employees are being paid “under the table” for their overtime work, and proper employment taxes are not being withheld. Only paying time-and-a-half on cash wages and not counting these hours and overtime premiums on payroll records is a major violation of the laws and regulations of the IRS and U.S. Department of Labor. 
• Ignoring service charges – Failing to count service charges as business revenue can lead to tax errors and violations of wage and hour compliance. Service charges must be processed as non-tipped wages, which means they are subject to income and payroll tax withholdings. They also need to be counted as part of an employee’s rate of pay; otherwise, they distort overtime rates. 
• Incorrect tip credit calculations – An employee’s tips can be used to make up the amount needed to be paid to an employee to cover minimum wage. If you’re not double-checking to make sure the number of tips actually does bridge the gap between earned wages and the minimum wage, your employer could be illegally underpaying you. 
• Failing to include bonuses – Performance and non-discretionary bonuses are considered to be taxable wages by the IRS. If you fail to include bonuses in your year-end earnings, it could leave you open to costly tax penalties. 
• Miscalculating blended rates – Sometimes an employee will work multiple jobs for multiple rates or earn shift differentials during a given pay period. When this happens, overtime must be calculated based on a weighted average of all earnings, not just one rate. Failing to do so violates the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). 

What Should Tipped Employees Do if They’re Not Being Paid Fairly?

Every employee wants to be fully compensated for their hard work. There are few feelings worse than not being paid fairly for your time and effort. Many tipped employees know what it’s like to have some of their hard-earned money taken away from them by employers. Here are some steps you should take. 

What records should employees keep?

The first thing tipped employees should do if they feel they are not being paid fairly regarding overtime in Florida is to obtain as much documentation as they can. Try to save all the documents you have that can help prove you have not been given the money you earned through tips at your job. Keep all the documentation you have that verifies the hours you have worked, including overtime hours, as well as anything that reflects wages and/or tips. Documents to save include:

• Pay stubs
• Timecards
• Work schedules
• Tip records
• Text messages
• Payroll screenshots
• Employee handbook

How long do I have to file an overtime claim?

The length of time you have to file an unpaid overtime claim varies based on whether the claim is a standard violation or it is proven to be willful. The timeframe to file a claim for a standard violation is two years, while the timeframe is extended to three years for a willful violation. There is no comprehensive state law regarding overtime in Florida, so the state follows the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), which sets the requirements for filing an overtime claim. 

Another action you can take is to speak with your fellow employees about how they are compensated for overtime. It is not uncommon for employers to pay servers and other tipped employees in the same way. If your employer is not paying you appropriately for your overtime, it is possible that they are doing the same thing with other employees. Whether it is one person or a group of people, violating the employee rights of workers is serious and comes with consequences.

Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A. has decades of experience litigating collective and class action claims on behalf of employees whose workplace rights have been violated. Whether a wage violation affects one employee or an entire group of workers, our attorneys are prepared to take on employers of any size.

Employers who do not pay appropriate wages for overtime for servers and other tipped employees should be held accountable for their actions. If you are working more than forty hours per workweek in Florida, you should be getting, at a minimum, $17.98 for each overtime hour. These wages can add up over a period of time and amount to significant wages. Do you believe you have a wage and hour claim against your employer? Contact Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.

Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A., Florida Wage and Hour Lawyers

The wage and hour lawyers at Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A. fight hard to ensure the rights of employees across the state are being upheld. We believe strongly in the right to fair wages, including appropriate overtime pay in Florida. We understand what it takes to hold employers accountable for employment law violations and are with our clients every step of the way. Your employer most likely has a lawyer or team of lawyers, and you have the right to effective legal counsel.

Have you not received appropriate overtime in Florida? Contact us today for a free, confidential case evaluation. We have helped many servers, other tipped employees, and workers in other industries across the state hold employers accountable for violations of Florida overtime laws.

We serve the entire state, including Tampa, Orlando, Miami, Sarasota, St. Petersburg, Jacksonville, and West Palm Beach, to fight for the rights of hospitality/restaurant workers and other tipped employees. You deserve fair wages, and we are here to help. If payment for our legal fees is a concern, know that we are a contingency law firm.

There are no fees for our services unless we win. We get paid by getting you paid. We’re here to help if you feel your workplace rights were violated by your employer. We’ll fight for you. Contact Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A. for a free evaluation of your Florida overtime case.