MD · state labor law, 2026
Maryland labor laws: minimum wage, overtime, leave, final pay and breaks
A state wage frozen since 2024, county wages that move every July, and a paid family leave program pushed back to 2028.
Maryland and federal rules checked on official sources on · Checked by Radif Partners · How we calculate
- Minimum wage now
- $15.00/h
- statewide
- Next change
- none announced
- checked October 11, 2026
- Tipped cash wage
- $3.63/h
- tips must make up the rest
- Overtime
- 40 h/week
- state law
- Paid sick leave
- 1 h per 30 h
- cap 40 h a year
- Paid family leave
- from 2028
- benefits start January 1, 2028
Maryland's minimum wage is $15.00 an hour in 2026, the same since January 2024, with no automatic raise and nothing announced for 2027. Counties fill the gap: Montgomery County pays $18.00 at employers with 51 or more workers since July 1, 2026, and Howard County $16.00. Tipped employees may receive a cash wage of $3.63 provided tips carry them to the full rate, and workers under 18 can be paid 85% of the state minimum, which is $12.75. Overtime is time and a half after 40 hours a week. Under the Healthy Working Families Act, employers with 15 or more employees owe paid sick and safe leave at 1 hour for every 30 hours worked, up to 40 hours a year. The FAMLI paid family leave program will collect payroll contributions from January 2027 and pay benefits from January 1, 2028.
Gross pay for this week in Maryland
$600
Time and a half after 40 hours in a week
| Minimum wage in Maryland now | $15 an hour |
| Your rate against it | At or above the minimum |
| Overtime: none this week | $0 |
| Paid sick leave earned in a year | 40 hours (cap reached) |
| Breaks owed in a 8-hour shift | 30 min meal, 2 x 15 min paid rest |
| Final paycheck if fired | on or before the next regular payday |
| Unused vacation at the end | Paid out if the employer policy or contract says so |
| Paid family leave | Maryland Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI) (benefits from 2028-01-01), up to 12 weeks |
40 hours a week at $15. State rule applied. Minimum wage, overtime and leave rules have exceptions by employer size and industry. How this is calculated.
Three tiers in Montgomery County, set every July
Maryland's own rate has not moved since 2024, so the interesting numbers are local. Montgomery County indexes its minimum wage each July 1 to inflation in the Washington region and sorts employers by size: $18.00 at 51 or more employees, $16.50 at 11 to 50 and $15.95 at 10 or fewer, all since July 1, 2026. Tipped staff there get a cash wage of at least $4.00. Howard County reached $16.00 for every employer on July 1, 2026, once its smaller businesses caught up, and plans inflation increases starting in January 2027. Take a cashier working 30 hours a week in Silver Spring for a chain store: compared with the state rate, the county figure adds $4,680 over a year. Prince George's County also has a local ordinance, listed with the others in the table further down.
City minimum wage against the state rate
Flagstaff (AZ), per hour
$18.35
| Arizona state rate | $15.15 |
| Difference per hour | $3.20 |
| Difference over a year | $6,656 |
| Year at the city rate | $38,168 |
FAMLI arrives late: contributions in 2027, checks in 2028
The Family and Medical Leave Insurance program was delayed. Payroll contributions of 0.9% of wages, split evenly between employer and employee, start on January 1, 2027; employers with fewer than 15 workers pay only the employee half. Benefits begin on January 1, 2028: up to 12 weeks for a new child, a relative's serious illness or your own, and as many as 24 weeks in a year when your own health and a new child combine. The weekly payment is 90% of wages up to 65% of the state average weekly wage plus half of anything above, capped at $1,000 a week. Until then, the federal FMLA (12 unpaid weeks) and the Maryland Parental Leave Act, which gives 6 unpaid weeks to parents at employers with 15 to 49 employees, are the job protections available.
Sick and safe leave, and the tipped wage
Every Maryland employer must let workers accrue leave at one hour per 30 worked, but only those with 15 or more employees must pay for it; at smaller firms the hours are unpaid and job-protected. A 30-hour-a-week employee accrues 40 hours over a year, yet the law lets the employer stop at true, and the total balance may be capped at 64 hours. For tipped work, the $3.63 cash wage is legal only if tips lift the worker to $15.00, and restaurants must hand out a Tip Credit Wage Statement showing the calculation.
Do your tips cover the minimum wage?
Employer top-up owed per hour
$7.37
| Cash wage | $3.63 |
| Cash wage + tips | $7.63 |
| Minimum wage in Maryland | $15.00 |
| Top-up over a 30-hour week | $221 |
Breaks, overtime quirks and the last paycheck
Maryland has no general break law for adults. The exception is the Healthy Retail Employee Act, which applies to retail employers with 50 or more retail employees: a 15-minute break for a shift of 4 to 6 consecutive hours, 30 minutes for more than 6, and another 15 minutes for each extra 4 hours past 8. Bowling alleys and non-hospital residential care institutions use a 48-hour overtime threshold under state law, although the federal 40-hour rule may still bind them. Final wages are due on or before the next regular payday, and accrued vacation is owed unless a written policy shared at hiring says it is forfeited. The Division of Labor and Industry decides wage claims; an employment lawyer can advise on your facts.
Maryland employment rules at a glance, 2026
Minimum wage schedule
| From | Who it covers | Rate | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| January 1, 2026 | Statewide | $15.00 | Unchanged since January 1, 2024; no automatic indexing |
Workers covered by both laws get the higher rate. Employees under 18 may be paid 85% of the state minimum wage ($12.75). Read the Maryland rule.
Cities and counties with their own minimum wage
| Place | Rate | Since | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Montgomery County (51+ employees) | $18.00 | July 1, 2026 | ordinance page |
| Howard County | $16.00 | July 1, 2026 | ordinance page |
| Prince George's County | $15.30 | July 1, 2026 | ordinance page |
Overtime
Time and a half after 40 hours in a week. The salary test for exempt employees is the federal $684 a week. Bowling alleys and non-hospital residential care institutions: overtime after 48 hours under state law (FLSA may still require 40). source
Sick leave and family leave
Paid sick leave: 1 hour for every 30 hours worked (Accrue/use up to 40 hours a year; carry over up to 40 hours; total accrued balance capped at 64 hours. 15+ employees: paid; 14 or fewer: unpaid (job-protected).), all employers (paid if 15 or more employees). Maryland Healthy Working Families Act. Law dated January 1, 2018 but effective February 11, 2018 after the veto override. source
Maryland Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI): up to 12 weeks, benefits payable since January 1, 2028, 90% of average weekly wage up to 65% of the state average weekly wage, plus 50% of wages above that threshold; capped at $1,000/week. Included (own serious health condition); up to 24 weeks in a benefit year if both own health and new child. Maryland Parental Leave Act: 6 workweeks of unpaid parental leave (birth, adoption, foster) for employers with 15-49 employees source
Final paycheck and unused vacation
Fired or laid off: on or before the next regular payday. Quitting: on or before the next regular payday. Vacation: Accrued vacation must be paid unless a written policy, communicated at hiring, says it is forfeited. Sick leave is not payable unless a contract or policy says so.. source vacation rule
Meal and rest breaks
Meal: Only retail establishments with 50+ retail employees (Healthy Retail Employee Act): 15 minutes for 4-6 consecutive hours, 30 minutes for more than 6 hours, plus 15 minutes per additional 4 hours after 8 hours. Rest: Retail (50+ employees): 15-minute shift break for 4 to 6 consecutive hours. Outside large retail, no break law for adults; workers under 18 get breaks under child-labor rules source
Unions and dismissal
Maryland has no right-to-work law, so a union contract may require a fee from the workers it covers. Employment is at will: either side may end it at any time, except for an illegal reason such as discrimination or retaliation, or against a contract.
Also worth knowing in Maryland
- FAMLI was delayed: payroll contributions (0.9% of wages, split 0.45% employer / 0.45% employee; small employers under 15 pay only the employee half) start January 1, 2027 and benefits January 2028. source
- Three counties set their own minimum wage; Montgomery County's rises every July 1 with inflation and has three tiers by employer size. source