Minimum wage; establish at $15.00 and set requirements for exemptions and overtime.

HB 526 establishes a $15.00 per hour minimum wage for most Mississippi workers, with a separate $3.62 per hour base rate for tipped employees (like servers). It requires overtime pay at 1.5 times the regular rate for employees earning $455 or less weekly, including many blue-collar workers, first responders, and public safety staff. The bill also specifies that workers not covered by these rules fall under federal Fair Labor Standards Act protections. It directly affects hourly workers across Mississippi’s private and public sectors, particularly those in service industries and frontline roles.