The legislatures of MA and RI have been a bit busy this summer.  Here’s some important information for my Rhode Island and Massachusetts friends:

Rhode Island: 

Effective January 1, 2015, the Rhode Island minimum wage will increase to $9/hour from $8/hour.  The minimum cash wage for tipped employees will remain $2.89/hour.  This means that the tip credit will increase to $6.11/hour from $5.11/hour.

Massachusetts:

Many changes coming to the minimum wage, minimum cash wage and also to the Unemployment Insurance taxable wage base..
The highlights are:

• The Act raises the minimum wage, in increments, to $11/hour by 2017 and also increases the unemployment insurance (UI) taxable wage base and freezes UI tax rates for employers for three years effective January 1, 2015.
• Effective January 1, 2015, the minimum wage will increase to $9/hour.  It will increase to $10/hour effective January 1, 2016 and to $11/hour effective January 1, 2017.
• Interesting to note that MA will have the highest state minimum wage in the nation in 2017 assuming no other state increases their minimum wage by that point.
• Also effective, January 1, 2015, the minimum cash wage for tipped employees will increase to $3/hour from the current $2.63/hour.  This means that the tip credit will increase to $6/hour from $5.37/hour.
• Effective January 1, 2016, the minimum cash wage will increase to $3.35/hour, meaning that the tip credit will increase to $6.65/hour.
• Effective January 1, 2017, the minimum cash wage will increase to $3.75/hour, meaning that the tip credit will increase to $7.25/hour.
• The UI taxable wage base will increase to $15,000 from the current $14,000 on January 1, 2015.

Not sure what the tip credit is???  Click here!!!

Here’s the full text of each:

MA:  https://malegislature.gov/Bills/188/Senate/S2195
RI:  http://openstates.org/ri/bills/2014/HB7194/

For more information on this or anything related to payroll, don’t hesitate to contact me!!

Mitch Zucker
ConnectPay Payroll Services
2352 Main Street, Suite 303
Concord, Ma 01742
978-450-2900voice
978-319-4104 fax
774-218-9486 mobile
www.connectpay.us.com