Donât worry! The lesson plans, articles, and textbooks you use and love arenât going away. They are simply being moved into the new LEARN NC Digital Archive. While we are moving away from a focus on publishing, we know itâs important that educators have access to these kinds of resources.
Minimum wage laws protect all employees, whether or not they receive tips. Employees are entitled to earn the full minimum wage per hour as set by federal or state law. Currently, the federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour. The minimum wage in South Dakota is $8.50 (as of January 1, 2015). Employees in South Dakota are entitled to the higher rate of $8.50 an hour. State laws differ as to whether the employer must pay the full minimum wage itself or may count an employeeâs tips toward its minimum wage obligation.
This is unfortunate because minimum wage workers who work forty hours a week still find themselves living below poverty level. The U.S. Census Bureau in 1999 determined that approximately 4.6% of all South Carolina workers are living at the poverty level compared to 4.1% nationwide. Other states that have raised their minimum wage even by $1.00 per hour over the federal minimum wage have found state welfare rolls decline while state revenues increase.