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HOURLY WAGE INDEX

Let’s talk wages in Louisiana

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$7.25

What is the minimum wage in Louisiana?

The Louisiana minimum wage is the same as the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour. The Louisiana minimum wage for tipped employees is $2.13 per hour. However, if the employee's tips combined with the hourly wage do not equal the minimum wage, the employer must make up the difference.

There are some exceptions to the minimum wage law in Louisiana. These include:

Learners: Employers may pay learners a sub-minimum wage of $4.25 per hour for the first 90 consecutive calendar days after the learner is initially employed by the employer.
Certain workers with physical or mental limitations: Employers may pay sub-minimum wages to workers with physical or mental limitations that limit their ability to do the job.
Employees under 18 years old: Employers may pay employees under 18 years old a sub-minimum wage of $4.25 per hour for the first 90 consecutive calendar days after the employee is initially employed by the employer.

$25.69

What is the average wage in Louisiana?

The average wage in Louisiana is $25.69 per hour. The cost of living in Louisiana is also lower than the national average, which may account for the lower wages.

$30.90

What is the living wage in Louisiana?

The living wage in Louisiana is $11.33 per hour, or $23,560 per year. This is higher than the minimum wage, but still lower than the average wage. The living wage is the minimum amount of money that a person needs to earn to cover their basic needs, such as housing, food, and transportation.

$10.00

What is the minimum wage in New Orleans, Louisiana?

The minimum wage in New Orleans is $10.00 per hour, which is higher than the state and federal minimum wages. The minimum wage in New Orleans will increase to $15.00 per hour by 2022.

Wages aren’t everything!

While pay is one of the main factors that hourly employees consider when choosing to join (or stay at) a company, it’s not the end all be all. Research shows that advancement opportunities, supportive management, and schedule flexibility are all incredibly important as well.

Want to learn more about this trend? We dive deep into the data behind which perks and benefits matter most to hourly workers. Check out our full conversation with expert Sara Wasserteil of Cara Collective.

A guide to hourly labor laws in Louisiana

Verified by Legal Counsel Brooke Davis

Standard Minimum Wage: No state minimum wage. Adheres to the federal minimum wage of $7.25 under the Fair Labor Standards Act (29 US Code § 206).
Tipped Minimum Wage: $2.13 per hour, totaling at least minimum wage after tips (29 US Code § 203) (DoL Table).
Overtime: Hours exceeding 40 in a fixed week are overtime and subject to 1.5 times the regular rate (29 US Code § 207) (DoL).
Meal Breaks:
- Adults: No state or federal law requiring meal breaks. Federal law allows unpaid, non-working, bona-fide meal breaks over 30 minutes; exceptions may apply (29 C.F.R. § 785.19) (DoL).
- Minors: Youths employed for 5 hours receive a 30-minute unpaid meal break (La. Stat. tit. 23 § 213).
Rest Breaks: No state or federal law requires rest breaks. Breaks lasting 5–20 minutes must be paid (29 C.F.R. § 785.18).
Wage Deductions: No employer can deduct wages from employees as fines except when the employee negligently damages or steals goods or property, but fines cannot exceed damages. Third-party deductions benefitting the employer may not reduce wages below the applicable minimum (29 C.F.R. § 4.168) (29 US Code § 203) (La. Stat. tit. 23 § 635).

Final Paychecks: By the first of the next regular payday or 15 days post-termination or post-resignation (La. Stat. tit. 23 § 635).
Wage Payment Frequency: Twice monthly with payments within 15 days of the pay period (La. Stat. tit. 23 § 635).
Paid Sick Leave: No state/federal law. Policies are determined by the employer or through collective bargaining agreements (DoL).
Paid Family and Medical Leave: No state/federal law paid leave law. The FMLA provides up to 12 unpaid weeks in one year for eligible employees (FMLA).
Maximum Daily and Weekly Hours for Children Under 16:
- School session: No working during school hours; three hours per day; 18 hours per week.
- Non-school session: 8 hours per day; 40 hours per week.
- Working hours: Only between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m., extended until 9 p.m. June 1 through Labor Day.
- Other: Minors may not work more than six consecutive days per week (La. Stat. tit. 23 § 211) (La. Stat. tit. 23 § 214) (La. Stat. tit. 23 § 215) (29 C.F.R. § 570.35).
Maximum Daily and Weekly Hours for Children 16 and 17: No state/federal law restricting 16- and 17-year-olds’ working hours in non-hazardous occupations (DoL).

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between gross wages and net wages?

It's important to remember that the Hourly Wage Index data above reflects gross wages, or the amount of money an employee earns before accounting for payroll deductions like taxes, benefits, or wage garnishments. Due to variability in tax rates across locations, slightly lower gross wages in a certain location might result in higher take home pay, or vice versa.

What is a good hourly wage?

This question is a difficult one to answer, as a "good hourly wage" is highly subjective according to experience, work responsibilities, cost of living, and other factors. We recommend using Hourly Wage Index data as a starting point. Once you have established a baseline for certain positions, do further research into similar businesses in your area.

Lastly, consider surveying your employees. They're the best resource to help you know what is a good hourly wage, what competitive pay looks like in your location, and how competitive wages change in your industry over time.

Offering competitive pay is one of my top priorities—what other resources do you have that might help?

We know that getting applicants to pay attention to your business can be extremely challenging, and that offering competitive pay is a huge part of that. Wages aren’t everything, however! Applicant experience is another important factor that can help set you apart from your competition. A few examples include:

Short, easy to understand job descriptions
Mobile-friendliness
Quick communication
Streamlined interview stages

Resources

Learn more about hiring and
retaining the hourly workforce

GUIDE

4 secrets to increasing loyalty among today’s deskless workforce

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HIRING HACKS

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We're here to help!

A Workstream hiring specialist can help you identify high impact ways to improve your applicant experience, and even help you determine what is a good hourly wage for your location and business.

Featured Reads

For our customers: Product roadmap sneak peek

Restaurant

Learn how to tackle the hardest aspects of paying restaurant workers from taxes and tip reporting to labor law compliance.

HOURLY WAGE INDEX

Let’s talk wages in Louisiana

What is the minimum wage in Louisiana?

What is the average wage in Louisiana?

What is the living wage in Louisiana?

What is the minimum wage in New Orleans, Louisiana?

Wages aren’t everything!

While pay is one of the main factors that hourly employees consider when choosing to join (or stay at) a company, it’s not the end all be all. Research shows that advancement opportunities, supportive management, and schedule flexibility are all incredibly important as well.

Want to learn more about this trend? We dive deep into the data behind which perks and benefits matter most to hourly workers. Check out our full conversation with expert Sara Wasserteil of Cara Collective.

A guide to hourly labor laws in Louisiana

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between gross wages and net wages?

What is a good hourly wage?

Offering competitive pay is one of my top priorities—what other resources do you have that might help?

Resources

Learn more about hiring andretaining the hourly workforce

GUIDE

4 secrets to increasing loyalty among today’s deskless workforce

HIRING HACKS

Get actionable tips in this series of quick videos

GUIDE

Checking the box on hiring and retention

Resources

Become a hiring and onboarding expert.

GUIDE

Checking the box on hiring and retention

BLOG

5 Steps to build your convenience store brand

BLOG

Social media recruiting: Why your employees should help

We're here to help!

Learn about wages in your city

Learn more about hiring and
retaining the hourly workforce