Before an employer can count your tips toward the minimum wage, federal rules (29 CFR 531.59) say it must tell you:
- The cash wage it will pay you.
- How much tip credit it is claiming.
- That the credit cannot be more than the tips you actually receive.
- That you keep all your tips, except through a valid tip pool among tipped workers.
- That it cannot take the credit unless it has told you these things.
Federal law allows the notice to be spoken or written. Some states require more: New York requires written notice at hire, and North Carolina also requires your signed tip certification. Without proper notice, the employer may lose the tip credit and owe the full minimum wage for those hours.
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