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Help restaurant and franchise owners hire, pay, and retain your hourly team.

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

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HOURLY WAGE INDEX

Let’s talk wages in Ohio

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$10.45

What is the minimum wage in Ohio?

The minimum wage in Ohio increased to $10.45 per hour for non-tipped employees and $5.05 per hour for tipped employees. The Ohio minimum wage will increase each year on January 1st in accordance with the Consumer Price Index (CPI), until it reaches $15.00 per hour in 2025. After 2025, the minimum wage in Ohio will continue to increase at the CPI rate, rounded to the nearest five cents.

The Ohio minimum wage laws apply to most employees, and employers are required to pay the higher of either the state or federal minimum wage. Future changes to the minimum wage in Ohio will depend on legislative decisions, economic conditions, and considerations of fairness and worker well-being.

$28.79

What is the average wage in Ohio?

The average wage in Ohio is $28.79 per hour. The average wage will increase each year on January 1st in accordance with the Consumer Price Index (CPI), until it reaches $37.50 per hour in 2025. After 2025, the average wage will continue to increase at the CPI rate, rounded to the nearest five cents.

$31.45

What is the living wage in Ohio?

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 Ohio

Verified by Legal Counsel Brooke Davis

Standard Minimum Wage:
- Employers grossing $385,000+: $10.45.
- Employers grossing less than $385,000: $7.25.
- Employees under 16: $7.25 (OH DoC) (Ohio Rev. Code § 4111.02) (29 US Code § 206).
Tipped Minimum Wage: $5.25, totaling no less than the minimum wage with tips (OH DoC) (Ohio Rev. Code § 4111.01 et seq.) (29 US Code § 206).
Overtime: Hours exceeding 40 in a fixed week are overtime, paid at 1.5 times the regular rate (Ohio Rev. Code § 4111.03).
Meal Breaks:
- Minors under 18: A 30-minute break for five work hours.
- Adults: No state or federal law requiring meal breaks. Federal law allows unpaid, non-working, bonafide meal breaks over 30 minutes; exceptions may apply (29 C.F.R. § 785.19) (DoL). (Ohio Rev. Code § 4109.07).
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: Only those required by law, such as taxes, and those authorized by the employee in writing. Third-party deductions benefitting the employer may not reduce wages below the applicable minimum (Ohio Rev. Code § 4113.15) (29 C.F.R. § 4.168) (29 US Code § 203).

Final Paychecks: By the next regularly scheduled payday or within 15 days of resignation or termination (Ohio Rev. Code § 4113.15).
Wage Payment Frequency: Semi-monthly, with payments made on regularly designated paydays (Ohio Rev. Code § 4113.15).
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 paid leave. 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; up to three hours per day and 18 hours per week. Only between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.
- Non-school session: Up to eight hours per day and 40 hours per week. Only between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. (Ohio.gov) (Ohio Rev. Code § 4109.01 et seq.) (29 C.F.R. § 570.35).
Maximum Daily and Weekly Hours for Children 16 and 17:
- School session: Up to eight hours per day and 40 days per week. Not before 6 a.m. or 7 a.m. if employed after 8 p.m. the last night. Not after 11 p.m. before school days. No hourly limitation per day or week.

Non-school session: No daily or weekly hour limitations (Ohio.gov) (Ohio Rev. Code § 4109.01 et seq.) (29 C.F.R. § 570.35).

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

Get the guide

HIRING HACKS

Get actionable tips in this series of quick videos

Watch now

GUIDE

Checking the box on hiring and retention

Download the packet

Resources

Become a hiring and onboarding expert.

GUIDE

Checking the box on hiring and retention

Download the packet

BLOG

5 Steps to build your convenience store brand

Read now

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Social media recruiting: Why your employees should help

Read now

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.

Learn about wages in your city

Columbus Minimum Wage 2023

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 Ohio

What is the minimum wage in Ohio?

What is the average wage in Ohio?

What is the living wage in Ohio?

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 Ohio

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