Missouri Tip Laws: An Employer’s Guide to Compliance and Fair Labor

 

Federal and state tip laws help ensure that service workers in tipped roles receive fair pay regardless of the amount of tips they can generate within a pay period. Tip laws are especially important in Missouri, where the tipped minimum wage is merely half of the full minimum wage.

What is a “tip” in Missouri?

Missouri law defines tips as voluntary payments customers leave for employees in acknowledgment of services rendered. To qualify as a tip, payments must come freely from the customer rather than being required by the establishment or included in the advertised cost of the product or service.

Tips count as employee income and belong solely to the employee. Under Missouri law, employers may not reduce, keep, or control tips unless distributing shares from a valid tip pool.

What is the difference between a tip and a service charge?

Although both tips and service charges cover service-related costs beyond the advertised price, Missouri law treats the two terms as legally distinct. Tips are payments that the customer leaves for the employee voluntarily, while service charges are payments that the business adds to customer bills. Tips belong to the employee, while service charges belong to the employer, who may allocate the revenue however they please.

Who qualifies as a tipped worker in Missouri?

In theory, any employee can receive tips in Missouri. However, not all employees who earn tips count as tipped employees. Under federal law, a tipped employee is any employee who regularly and customarily receives at least $30 in tips per month. Tipped employees must inhabit roles where tipping is a standard practice.

Examples of tipped roles include:

• Servers
• Bartenders
• Baristas
• Hosts
• Food runners
• Bussers
• Delivery drivers
• Hair stylists
• Nail technicians

Does Missouri follow the 80/20 rule?

Many states follow the 80/20 rule, which requires employers to pay full minimum wage if an employee spends more than 20% of their time on non-tipped tasks like cleaning, restocking, or packaging. This rule was once part of the FLSA, but in 2024, regulators repealed it, arguing that tracking tipped versus non-tipped work placed an unreasonable burden on employers.

Missouri follows the current FLSA standards, which state that employers may claim a tip credit from employees who perform incidental non-tipped tasks. However, this is on the condition that these tasks do not take a substantial amount of time. Since the FLSA does not provide an explicit definition of “substantial,” employers may choose their own limitations for non-tipped work.

Minimum wage and tip credits in Missouri

The minimum wage in Missouri is higher than the federal standard at $13.75 per hour. However, the state allows employers to claim up to 50% of the minimum wage as a tip credit if the employee makes sufficient tips. In other words, employers may pay tipped employees a reduced base wage of $6.88 per hour if the employees’ gross wages (base wages + tips) meet the state minimum wage.

Missouri tip credit rules

Missouri law requires all employers to follow FLSA standards when claiming tip credits. These regulations ensure that all tipped employees understand their pay structures and receive fair wages.

Tip credit only applies to tipped employees

Under the FLSA, employers may only claim tip credit from the wages of tipped employees, since workers in non-tipped roles have fewer opportunities to supplement their income with tips. Additionally, if a tipped employee makes less than $30 in tips in a month, the employer must pay them the full minimum wage.

Reimburse shortfalls

Tip credits exist to help employers shift part of labor costs toward customer tips. However, the employer remains legally responsible for making sure that their workers earn at least the full minimum wage. That’s why the FLSA requires employers to cover the gap when employees’ tips fall short of the state minimum.

Notify employees of tip credit arrangements

According to the FLSA, employers need to inform all tipped employees about any intent to claim tip credits. Advance notices help employees understand how they will be paid and give them fair opportunities to ask questions, negotiate, or refuse tip credit terms.

The FLSA allows verbal notices, but recommends written notices for increased transparency. Employers must include the following information in their notice:

• The employee’s base wage
• The portion of tips that the employer will count toward the tip credit
• A statement confirming the employer won’t keep or manage any of the employee’s tips, except in a lawful tip pooling setup

Tip pooling in Missouri

Missouri law allows tip pooling, giving employers the option to implement a shared tip pool for eligible employees. Employees split the pool among themselves at the end of each pay period, distributing shares based on clear, agreed-upon factors, such as role, seniority, or hours worked. This arrangement can help promote fairness among staff and secure tips for support roles like bussers or food runners.

Missouri tip pooling rules

To ensure fair distribution of tip pool shares, Missouri enforces multiple tip pooling rules, mostly aligning with FLSA guidelines. These rules guide the employer in maintaining transparency and complying with minimum wage laws.

Mandatory vs. voluntary tip pooling

Missouri law allows employers to require participation in tip pooling, even as a condition of employment, as long as the arrangement follows FLSA regulations. Employers who require tip pooling must clearly communicate the tip pool structure, including:

• Who will participate
• How the employer intends to distribute tips (e.g. based on hours, role, seniority, etc.)

The FLSA does not require written consent for tip pool participation. However, providing written notices in advance can help employers ensure transparency and avoid potential wage claims.

Eligible participants

	If the employer claims tip credit	If the employer does NOT claim tip credit
Tipped employees	✅	✅
Non-tipped employees	✅	❌
Managers and supervisors	❌	❌

Tipped employees are always allowed to participate in tip pools. Employers may also include non-tipped support staff, such as cooks, prep cooks, and dishwashers, if the establishment does not claim tip credits. However, if tip credits apply, employers may not allow non-tipped staff to participate in tip pooling arrangements.

Due to potential power imbalances, managers and supervisors may never participate in tip pooling. Their involvement could discourage employees from reporting unfair tip distribution or pressure them into agreeing to unfair terms.

Minimum wage requirements

Because shares from tip pools still legally count as tips, rules about employers reimbursing minimum wage shortfalls still apply. If tip pools reduce an employee’s gross wages below the full minimum wage, the employer must make the difference.

Legal consequences of violating tip laws in Missouri

In Missouri, violating tip laws also breaches wage laws. Depending on the offense and its severity, offenders face a number of possible consequences, including wage claims, fines, and lawsuits.

Wage claims

Employees affected by tip law violations may file wage claims with the Missouri Division of Labor Standards (DLS). If their claim succeeds, the DLS may require the employer to pay the employee back wages, liquidated damages, court costs, and attorney fees.

• Back pay: An employer found guilty of violating tip laws must reimburse employees for all tips they were legally entitled to receive. For instance, if an employer withheld $3,000 in tips, a successful wage claim would force them to return the exact amount to the affected employee.
• Liquidated damages: In addition to back pay, employers who violate wage laws may be required to pay liquidated damages. These damages usually match the amount of unpaid wages owed. If the employer in the above example owed $3,000, liquidated damages would bring the total amount owed up to $6,000.
• Attorney’s fees: When an employee’s wage claim is successful, the employer might also have to pay for the employee’s reasonable attorney fees and court expenses. This ensures employees can access legal help without shouldering the full cost themselves, promoting fairness in wage disputes.

Lawsuits

If the wage claim is too big for the DLS to handle, employees may pursue private legal action. Large groups of affected employees can file collective lawsuits or class actions. Similar to wage claims, successful lawsuits force employers to reimburse employees for previous violations, through remedies like back pay, liquidated damages, and attorneys’ fees.

Civil penalties

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) or Missouri labor agencies sometimes impose civil penalties to deter noncompliance. These penalties typically punish severe offenses, such as willful, repeated, or systemic violations. Examples of possible offenses include:

• Withholding tips
• Including ineligible employees in tip pools
• Falsifying tip records

Unlike back pay, liquidated damages, and attorney’s fees, civil penalties don’t go to the employee. Instead, they go directly to the government, serving purely as punitive measures to deter future violations.

Manage your tips more efficiently with 7shifts

Complying with tip laws is just one aspect of the tip management process. If you want to simplify your tip-related tasks, 7shifts’ tip management solutions enable you to automate administrative tasks, including tip pool distribution calculations, employee payouts, and even tip reporting and documentation. With these processes streamlined, you can cut the hassle, stay compliant, and focus on growing your restaurant business.