The current federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour. The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requires employers to pay nonexempt employees at least the minimum wage for all hours they work. The FLSA and its regulations also define: compensable work time, covered employers and employees, situations in which an employer may reduce an employee's pay below the minimum wage, and notices employers must post in the workplace.

State laws may require a higher minimum wage than the federal requirement. Local laws may require employers to pay city employees and the employees of companies benefiting from city contracts or subsidies a “living wage” that is greater than the federal minimum wage. In addition, the federal Davis-Bacon Act and Walsh Healey Act require employers to pay prevailing wages to employees working on public construction projects under federal contracts.