Tipped Employees in Maine

A Maine employer may consider tips as part of the wages of a service employee, but the credit taken by the employer may not exceed 50 percent of the state minimum hourly wage. An employer that elects to use the tip credit must inform the affected employee in advance and must be able to show that the employee receives at least the minimum hourly wage when direct wages (wages paid directly to the employee by the employer as opposed to money earned in tips) and the tip credit are combined. If the employee can show that the actual tips received were less than the tip credit, the employer must increase the employee's direct wages by the difference.