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Wages are always an interesting topic. Pennsylvania law requires employers to perform certain actions related to paying their employees. Currently, Pennsylvania’s minimum wage is the same as the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour. Pennsylvania’s minimum wage increases automatically with increases in the federal minimum wage. Perhaps most basically, Pennsylvania employers must pay wages in cash or by check and, under certain circumstances, by direct deposit or electronic pay cards.

Employers in Pennsylvania are generally required by Commonwealth law to pay covered employees’ overtime at one and one-half times their regular rate for all hours worked in excess of 40 hours in a workweek. Overtime must be compensated on a workweek basis to all employees regardless of whether their compensation is hourly, salaried, piece rate or any other type.

Pennsylvania law requires an employer to pay employees at least twice a month, on or before the 15th and the last day of the month. Overtime wages may be paid in the next succeeding pay period. Pennsylvania law provides that final wages are due by the next regular payday, whether the termination is voluntary or involuntary. Company policy rather than Pennsylvania law affects whether an employer must pay a terminating employee accrued vacation pay.

Pennsylvania employers are required to provide employees with a written record of certain pay-related information, including:

• Start and end dates of the pay period;
• The rate of pay;
• Hours worked;
• Gross wages;
• Deductions;
• Allowances claimed; and
• Net wages.

A Pennsylvania employer may make deductions from an employee’s wages if required by state or federal law or court order, with the employee’s written authorization or for other permissible reasons, including but not limited to child support, uniondues, pension or welfare plan contributions, garnishments, and tax levies. If there is any overlap between federal, state and/or local law, compliance with the law that provides the greatest employee rights or benefits is generally applicable.