Houston cannot set its own minimum wage. Tex. Lab. Code § 62.0515 preempts municipalities from regulating private-sector wages, so Houston workers are paid the Texas Minimum Wage Act floor, which Tex. Lab. Code § 62.051 ties to the federal FLSA rate of $7.25/hour (unchanged since July 24, 2009). Tipped employees may be paid $2.13/hour direct wage when tips bring total compensation to $7.25/hour.
Texas Labor Code Chapter 62 (the Texas Minimum Wage Act) sets the state floor by reference to the federal Fair Labor Standards Act ($7.25/hr since 2009). Section 62.0515 expressly preempts cities, counties, and other political subdivisions from adopting any private-employer minimum wage above the state rate. The City of Houston therefore has no general minimum wage ordinance for private employers. The city retains authority to set higher wages for its own municipal workforce and for contractors performing work directly for the City under a procurement contract, but cannot extend that floor to other private employers operating in Houston. The Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) administers and enforces the state Minimum Wage Act.
FLSA/Texas Minimum Wage Act violations are enforced by the U.S. Department of Labor Wage & Hour Division and by the Texas Workforce Commission. Employers who fail to pay $7.25/hour owe back wages plus, in willful cases, an equal amount in liquidated damages under 29 U.S.C. § 216(b). Civil penalties up to $1,100 per violation apply for repeat or willful violators. Workers may file a wage claim with TWC under Tex. Lab. Code Ch. 61 (Payday Law) within 180 days.
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