Minimum wage in Louisiana in 2026
$7.25 per hour1
per hourGeneral rate since July 24, 2009 · set by United States
Year 2026
Rates in force during 2026
| Applies to | Rate | Effective | Until |
|---|---|---|---|
StandardSourceThe federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour effective July 24, 2009.
Verified September 26, 2026 | $7.25July 24, 2009 – current | July 24, 2009 | current |
2 rates in force
Rates by worker type, industry and employer size
Louisiana has no rules of its own on record; these are the rules of United States that apply here.
| Applies to | Rate | Cash wage | Max tip credit | Effective |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Tipped employees · customarily and regularly receives more than $30 a month in tipsSourceAn employer must pay a tipped worker at least $2.13 per hour under the FLSA. An employer can take an FLSA tip credit equal to the difference between the direct wage, or the cash wage it pays directly to the tipped employee, and the federal minimum wage, which is currently $7.25 per hour. The maximum tip credit that an employer can currently claim is $5.12 per hour: ($7.25 - $2.13 direct (or cash) wage = $5.12).
Verified September 26, 2026 | $7.25July 24, 2009 | $2.13 | $5.12 | July 24, 2009 |
Youth · under 20 years old, first 90 consecutive calendar days of employmentSourceThe 1996 Amendments to the FLSA allow employers to pay a youth minimum wage of not less than $4.25 an hour to employees who are under 20 years of age during the first 90 consecutive calendar days after initial employment.
Verified September 26, 2026 | $4.25October 1, 1996 | — | — | October 1, 1996 |
1990 to 2026
History of the United States rate
Each step is a rate row with its own quoted source.
Show the history as a table
| Applies to | Rate | Effective | Until |
|---|---|---|---|
StandardSourceThe 2007 amendments increased the minimum wage to $5.85 per hour effective July 24, 2007; $6.55 per hour effective July 24, 2008; and $7.25 per hour effective July 24, 2009.
Verified September 26, 2026 | $6.55July 24, 2008 – July 24, 2009 | July 24, 2008 | July 24, 2009 |
StandardSourceThe 2007 amendments increased the minimum wage to $5.85 per hour effective July 24, 2007; $6.55 per hour effective July 24, 2008; and $7.25 per hour effective July 24, 2009.
Verified September 26, 2026 | $5.85July 24, 2007 – July 24, 2008 | July 24, 2007 | July 24, 2008 |
StandardSourceThe 1996 amendments increased the minimum wage to $4.75 an hour on October 1, 1996, and to $5.15 an hour on September 1, 1997.
Verified September 26, 2026 | $5.15September 1, 1997 – July 24, 2007 | September 1, 1997 | July 24, 2007 |
StandardSourceThe 1996 amendments increased the minimum wage to $4.75 an hour on October 1, 1996, and to $5.15 an hour on September 1, 1997.
Verified September 26, 2026 | $4.75October 1, 1996 – September 1, 1997 | October 1, 1996 | September 1, 1997 |
StandardSourceThe minimum wage was raised to $3.80 an hour beginning April 1, 1990, and to $4.25 an hour beginning April 1, 1991.
Verified September 26, 2026 | $4.25April 1, 1991 – October 1, 1996 | April 1, 1991 | October 1, 1996 |
StandardSourceThe minimum wage was raised to $3.80 an hour beginning April 1, 1990, and to $4.25 an hour beginning April 1, 1991.
Verified September 26, 2026 | $3.80April 1, 1990 – April 1, 1991 | April 1, 1990 | April 1, 1991 |
BLS · May 2025
How the minimum compares with typical pay in Louisiana
33%of the median hourly wage
The median hourly wage across all occupations in Louisiana is $21.89 and the mean is $27.21 (BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, state estimates). The minimum wage of $7.25 is 33% of the median; the 10th-percentile wage is $10.92, so roughly the lowest-paid tenth of workers earn within $3.67 of the minimum. BLS
| Applies to | Rate |
|---|---|
| Minimum wage | $7.25 |
| 10th percentile | $10.92 |
| 25th percentile | $14.59 |
| Median | $21.89 |
| Mean | $27.21 |
8 rules · September 27, 2026
Labor law basics in Louisiana
What the law adds on top of the hourly rate. Follow the citation for exceptions.
Final paycheck
Employees who are discharged or resign must be paid the amount due on or before the next regular payday or within 15 days of separation, whichever comes first.
Source: La. R.S. 23:631
A.(1)(a) Upon the discharge of any laborer or other employee of any kind whatever, it shall be the duty of the person employing such laborer or other employee to pay the amount then due under the terms of employment, whether the employment is by the hour, day, week, or month, on or before the next regular payday or no later than fifteen days following the date of discharge, whichever occurs first. (b) Upon the resignation of any laborer or other employee of any kind whatever, it shall be the duty of the person employing such laborer or other employee to pay the amount then due under the terms of employment, whether the employment is by the hour, day, week, or month, on or before the next regular payday for the pay cycle during which the employee was working at the time of separation or no later than fifteen days following the date of resignation, whichever occurs first.
- Source
- statute
- snapshot
- September 27, 2026
- Notes
- An employer that fails to pay owes penalty wages of up to 90 days' pay plus attorney fees, unless the dispute was in good faith (R.S. 23:632).
Verified September 27, 2026
Pay frequency
Covered employers must tell employees at hire how often they will be paid; those that do not designate paydays must pay on the 1st and 16th, and manufacturing, oil-drilling and mining employers with 10 or more employees and public service corporations must pay at least twice a month. (employers subject to R.S. 23:633 (manufacturing, oil drilling, mining with 10+ employees; public service corporations))
Source: La. R.S. 23:633
A. It shall be the duty of each employer subject to this Section to inform his employees at the time of hire what wages they will be paid, the method in which they will be paid and the frequency of payment along with any subsequent changes thereto. Except as provided under Subsection B of this Section, any employer that fails to designate paydays must pay his employees on the first and sixteenth days of the month or as near as is practicable to those days. B. Every person, engaged in manufacturing of any kind, or engaged in boring for oil and in mining operations, employing ten or more employees, and every public service corporation, shall make full payment to employees for services performed no less than twice during each calendar month
- Source
- statute
- snapshot
- September 27, 2026
Verified September 27, 2026
Meal breaks
Minors under 16 must get a 30-minute meal break in every five-hour work period, which is not counted as working time. (minors under 16)
Source: La. R.S. 23:213
No minor under sixteen years of age shall be employed, permitted, or suffered to work for any five-hour period without one interval of at least thirty minutes within such period for meals. If the period of work before the interval exceeds five hours by ten minutes or less, that difference shall be considered de minimis and shall not be considered a violation of this Section. Such interval shall not be included as part of the working hours of the day. This interval shall be thirty minutes.
- Source
- statute
- snapshot
- September 27, 2026
Verified September 27, 2026
Young workers' hours
Minors under 16 may not work between 7 p.m. and 7 a.m. (9 p.m. from June 1 to Labor Day) or more than 40 hours a week, and 16- and 17-year-olds still in school may not work late at night before a school day (16: 11 p.m.-5 a.m.; 17: midnight-5 a.m.).
Source: La. R.S. 23:215
A.(1) No minor sixteen years of age who has not graduated from high school shall be employed, or permitted, or suffered to work between the hours of 11:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. prior to the start of any school day. (2) No minor seventeen years of age who has not graduated from high school shall be employed, or permitted, or suffered to work between the hours of 12:00 a.m. and 5:00 a.m. prior to the start of any school day. B. No minor under sixteen years of age who has not graduated from high school shall be employed, or permitted, or suffered to work between the hours of 7:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m.; except from June first through Labor Day at which time the permissible hours are extended to 9:00 p.m. Minors who are employed in the dairy industry shall be exempt from the provisions of this Section. C. No minor under sixteen years of age who has not graduated from high school shall be employed, or permitted, or suffered to work in, about, or in connection with any occupation, more than forty hours in any one week.
- Source
- statute
- snapshot
- September 27, 2026
Verified September 27, 2026
Overtime
Covered non-exempt employees must be paid at least 1.5 times their regular rate for hours worked over 40 in a workweek; federal law sets no daily overtime and no weekend or holiday premium. (non-exempt employees covered by the FLSA)
Source: 29 U.S.C. § 207
Unless specifically exempted, employees covered by the Act must receive overtime pay for hours worked in excess of 40 in a workweek at a rate not less than time and one-half their regular rates of pay. There is no limit in the Act on the number of hours employees aged 16 and older may work in any workweek. The Act does not require overtime pay for work on Saturdays, Sundays, holidays, or regular days of rest, as such.
- Source
- agency page
- snapshot
- September 26, 2026
Verified September 26, 2026
Overtime-exempt salary threshold
Executive, administrative and professional employees are exempt from minimum wage and overtime only if they meet the duties tests and are paid a salary of at least $684 per week ($35,568 a year). (executive, administrative, professional and outside sales employees)
Source: 29 C.F.R. Part 541
To qualify for exemption, employees generally must meet certain tests regarding their job duties and be paid on a salary basis at not less than $684 per week.
- Source
- agency page
- snapshot
- September 26, 2026
- Notes
- The 2024 rule raising the level to $844/$1,128 was vacated in November 2024; DOL enforces the 2019 level of $684.
Verified September 26, 2026
Required poster
Employers whose employees are covered by the FLSA minimum wage provisions must post, and keep posted, a notice explaining the Act in a conspicuous place in all of their establishments. (employers covered by the FLSA)
Source: 29 U.S.C. § 207
Every employer of employees subject to the Fair Labor Standards Act's minimum wage provisions must post, and keep posted, a notice explaining the Act in a conspicuous place in all of their establishments.
- Source
- agency page
- snapshot
- September 26, 2026
- Notes
- The notice DOL publishes for this purpose is the FLSA minimum wage poster (WH-1088), free from the WHD posters page.
Verified September 26, 2026
Tips
An employer may count tips toward the minimum wage only after telling the tipped employee the cash wage, the tip credit claimed, that the credit cannot exceed tips received, that tips belong to the employee except in a valid tip pool, and that the credit requires this notice; employers, managers and supervisors may never keep employees' tips. (tipped employees under the FLSA)
Source
Employers must provide the following information to tipped employees before taking a tip credit under the FLSA: the amount of the direct (or cash) wage the employer is paying a tipped employee, which must be at least $2.13 per hour; the additional amount claimed by the employer as a tip credit, which cannot exceed $5.12 (the difference between the minimum required direct (or cash) wage of $2.13 and the current minimum wage of $7.25); that the tip credit claimed by the employer cannot exceed the amount of tips actually received by the tipped employee; that all tips received by the tipped employee are to be retained by the employee except for a valid tip pooling arrangement limited to employees who customarily and regularly receive tips; and that the tip credit will not apply to any tipped employee unless the employee has been informed of these tip credit provisions.
- Source
- agency page
- snapshot
- September 26, 2026
Verified September 26, 2026
$7.25 / hour
Calculators
Estimates before tax at this rate. Nothing you type leaves this page.
What this wage pays
| Weekly | $290.00 |
|---|---|
| Monthly52 weeks ÷ 12 | $1,256.67 |
| Annual52 weeks | $15,080.00 |
| Overtime rate1.5× where overtime applies | $10.88 |
5 questions
Frequently asked questions
What is the minimum wage in Louisiana in 2026?
$7.25 per hour since July 24, 2009, set by United States. For a 40-hour week that is about $290.00 a week or $15,080.00 a year before tax.
Is the minimum wage in Louisiana increasing?
No increase is scheduled on record as of October 1, 2026. Inflation-indexed jurisdictions announce the next figure a few months before it takes effect.
What is the tipped minimum wage in Louisiana?
Employers may pay tipped employees a cash wage of $2.13 per hour as long as tips bring them to $7.25 (a maximum tip credit of $5.12).
What is the minimum wage for young or new workers in Louisiana?
Youth (under 20 years old, first 90 consecutive calendar days of employment): $4.25 per hour.
How does Louisiana compare with other states?
Louisiana's $7.25 ranks 32 of 51 state general rates, against a federal floor of $7.25.
2 levels of law
How this rate is resolved
The highest minimum that covers the work location applies.
Employers must pay the highest minimum that covers the work location. WageTable checks each level in turn:
- United States
- Louisiana
Louisiana sets no rule of its own on record.
Notes on this jurisdiction's rules and sources
No state minimum wage law; the federal FLSA minimum wage ($7.25, tipped cash wage $2.13) applies to covered employers. La. R.S. 23:642 bars parishes and municipalities from setting a minimum wage. Evidence: US DOL state table (us-dol-state-table, as of 2026-09-26: 'No state minimum wage law.'). No rows published; federal applies.
United States
Enforcement
Enforced by U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division. Employers must display the official minimum wage poster.
Underpaid?File a wage claim