Minimum wage in Rhode Island

The purpose of § 2.5 of this Part is to set forth procedures for employers to follow in order to obtain employer exemptions from the weekly pay requirements set forth in R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-14-2.2. 2.5.2 Petitions A.Any employer that has an average payroll that exceeds two hundred percent (200%) of the State minimum wage as defined in R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-12-3 may petition the Director to pay wages less than weekly to demonstrate that the employer meets the requirements set forth in R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 28-14-2.2(b)(1) through (3). For purposes of these Regulations, “other sufficient demonstration of security” shall mean a letter of credit from a financial institution. B.Any employer whose average payroll is less than two hundred percent (200%) of the State minimum wage as defined in R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-13-3 and demonstrates good cause may petition the Director to pay wages less than weekly to demonstrate that the employer meets the requirements set forth in R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 28-14-2.2(c)(1) through (5). C.Any employer who petitions the Director under either §§ 2.5.2(A) or (B) of this Part above, must submit: 1.A completed, signed and notarized application along with the requested supporting documentation a.The application may be accessed through the Department’s website. b.All applications shall contain original signatures. (1)By signing the application, the employer agrees to continued compliance with the requirements of R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-14-2.2 and this Part. (2)Employer shall have the burden of notifying the Department, in writing within thirty (30) days, if circumstances supporting approval no longer apply. D.Upon receipt of the above-referenced application, the Director shall either grant the petition, deny the petition, or request additional information. 1.If the Director approves the petition, the employer must notify the affected employees subject to the petition of the pay change fourteen (14) calendar days in advance of the pay change. E.Permission to pay less than weekly shall not be valid until the employer receives written approval from the Department.

Source

agency page

snapshot

September 27, 2026

Notes

R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-14-2.2 as implemented by 260-RICR-30-05-2 § 2.5. The DLT regulation on the Secretary of State's Code of Regulations is cited.

Verified September 27, 2026

1. Employers must provide paid sick and safe leave time to all employees if the employer maintained an average of eighteen (18) or more employees in Rhode Island during the previous payroll year’s highest two employment quarters. 2. For the purpose of this determination, employers shall count all unique positions and that total shall represent the number of employees that they employed during that time period. 3.This calculation shall be performed on an annual basis using that year’s employment data. 4. Employers must establish annually whether they employ eighteen (18) or more employees and are required to provide paid leave. This determination remains in effect, regardless of the size of the employer, for the following twelve (12) months. 5. New employers must provide paid sick and safe leave to all employees once they have a total of eighteen (18) or more employees on their payroll.

Source

agency page

snapshot

September 27, 2026

Notes

Healthy and Safe Families and Workplaces Act (R.I. Gen. Laws ch. 28-57). The accrual rate (1 hour per 35 hours, up to 40 hours a year) and unpaid leave for smaller employers are in § 28-57-5.

Verified September 27, 2026

The purpose of § 2.6 of this Part is to identify classes of employers, either because of the nature of their operations or their size, that are exempt from the requirement that work performed by employees on Sundays and holidays must be paid for at least one and one half (1 1/2) times the normal rate of pay for the work performed.

Source

agency page

snapshot

September 27, 2026

Notes

R.I. Gen. Laws ch. 25-3 (Work on Holidays and Sundays); 260-RICR-30-05-2 § 2.6 lists the exempt employer classes.

Verified September 27, 2026

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

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

no more than 3 hours on a school day , including Fridays; no more than 8 hours on a nonschool day; no more than 18 hours during a week when school is in session; no more than 40 hours during a week when school is not in session;

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agency page

snapshot

September 26, 2026

Verified September 26, 2026

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

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