Florida's minimum wage rose from $14 to $15 an hour on Sept. 30, making it the 18th state to cross the $15 threshold and completing the annual step increases voters approved in a 2020 constitutional amendment. More than one-third of U.S. states now carry a $15 floor — more than double the federal rate of $7.25, which has not moved since 2009.

The $15 rate holds through Dec. 31, 2027, after which Florida will adjust its wage annually for inflation. The Sept. 30 increase is the final scheduled $1 step under the amendment.

Florida is not alone. More than 20 states raised their minimum wage ceilings in 2026, ranging from $10.85 in Montana to $17.13 in Washington. The widening gap between state and federal requirements forces multi-state operators to manage a patchwork of local wage mandates.

For full-service restaurants, the Florida change reaches tipped labor directly. The state permits a tip credit of $3.02, so the minimum direct cash wage for eligible tipped employees rises to $11.98 an hour, up from $10.98 — a dollar-an-hour increase in tipped payroll that hits every operator using the tip credit.

Penny phaseout heads to Trump's desk

The Common Cents Act, which halts penny minting and establishes rounding rules for cash transactions when exact change is unavailable, passed both chambers of Congress and now awaits President Trump's signature. The law will change how restaurants handle cash payments and receipts. According to the National Restaurant Association, more than a quarter of annual industry sales are made in cash. The rounding rules are structured to balance outcomes between customer and business.

NLRB restores employer-friendly discipline standard

The National Labor Relations Board restored a standard from the first Trump administration that makes it easier for employers to discipline workers for offensive conduct that occurs during protected union activity. The 2026 decision revives the framework from the board's 2020 General Motors ruling, which applies the Wright Line test: an employer can reprimand or terminate an employee if the conduct would have warranted discipline regardless of protected labor activity.

Employees retain the right to protest, discuss and vote on union representation under the National Labor Relations Act. The practical shift: employers now have more cover to discipline or fire a worker for profanity or harsh language used while arguing with a manager or posting about their workplace on social media. The standard applies to all employers, unionized or not. Workers can still complain to each other about wages, schedules, staffing and other conditions without fear of repercussions.

California mandates sugar-icon menus by 2029

California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a food and nutrition package Monday that includes menu labeling requirements and a first-in-the-nation state certification program for non-ultra-processed foods.

By Jan. 1, 2029, restaurants with 20 or more locations must place a sugar-cube icon next to standard menu beverages containing at least 100% of the FDA's daily value for added sugar. Chains will need to redesign menus to comply and may rework recipes to manage how the icon reads to customers.

Separately, AB 2244 — passed unanimously by the California Legislature last month — creates a voluntary "Non-Ultraprocessed Certified" seal. Qualifying foods cannot be classified as ultra-processed, appear on lists of restricted school foods, or contain high levels of sodium, sugar and saturated fats. Items restaurants buy routinely as ingredients — bread, sauces, canned produce — could qualify for the seal, giving purchasing departments a new sourcing criterion.

White House backs American Franchise Act

The Trump administration endorsed the American Franchise Act, H.R. 5267, giving fresh momentum to legislation that would write a franchise-specific federal joint-employer standard into the National Labor Relations Act and Fair Labor Standards Act.

Under the bill, introduced last year, a franchisor counts as a joint employer only if it "shares or codetermines one or more of the employees' essential terms and conditions of employment" such as wages, benefits and working hours. The NLRB currently follows its 2020 rule, which does not hold franchisors responsible for franchisees' adherence to labor rules — a standard that has flipped repeatedly across three presidential administrations.

The National Restaurant Association and the International Franchise Association both support the bill. For franchise operators, it would draw a clearer federal boundary between franchisor oversight and franchisee employment responsibilities, insulating brand companies from wage-and-hour liability tied to franchisee payrolls.

With wage floors climbing in more states each year, a joint-employer statute advancing in Washington and menu-labeling deadlines now on the calendar for 2029, operators face compliance work on three fronts simultaneously.