In many States an employee who receives tips must be allowed to keep those tips unless he voluntarily agrees to share them with other employees (such as a voluntary "tip pool" situation). In some States the law requires that an employer who charges a customer a "gratuity" or "tip" or "service charge" which is directly added to the customer's bill (such as a restaurant that imposes a 15% gratuity which is added to a customer's bill) must in turn pay such charge to the employee or employees who provided the service (the waiter, etc.). In these States the employer cannot retain any portion of such a "billed" tip. It is also improper in most situations for managers to participate in or receive any part of a "tip pool" shared by other employees (for example, a restaurant shift manager cannot share in the "tip pool" that the shift's waiters voluntarily agree to share among themselves). In Nevada (unlike many States) an employer MAY NOT pay an employee less than the $5.15 an hour minimum wage if the employee receives tips (paying tipped workers less than the minimum wage is called giving the employer a "tip credit" and many States, but not Nevada, allow an employer to pay a tipped worker less than the minimum wage). If you have any questions about how tips have been handled or paid at your workplace, or whether you have been properly paid less than the hourly minimum wage in addition to your tips because of a "tip credit" used by your employer, please contact our office. | |