Nebraska Updates Minimum Wage Law with Fixed Annual Increases and New Youth and Training Wages

Who: Nebraska employers with 4 or more employees

When: Effective July 17, 2026

Governor Jim Pillen signed LB 258 on February 9, 2026, amending the Nebraska Wage and Hour Act to replace consumer price index-based minimum wage adjustments with a fixed annual increase, establish a new minimum wage for certain youth workers, and revise the training wage for newer workers. These changes take effect July 17, 2026.

Nebraska’s minimum wage reached $15.00 per hour on January 1, 2026, and had previously been scheduled to increase each subsequent January 1 based on the Consumer Price Index for the Midwest Region. Under LB 258, that index-based mechanism has been eliminated. Starting January 1, 2027, the minimum wage will instead increase by a fixed 1.75% annually. The Nebraska Department of Labor will publish each year’s adjusted rate by October 15 of the prior year, beginning in October 2026.

New Youth Minimum Wage (Ages 14–15)

Effective July 17, 2026, employers may pay a wage of $13.50 per hour to employees who are at least 14 but under 16 years of age, provided they are not emancipated minors. Beginning January 1, 2030, and every five years thereafter, the youth minimum wage will increase by 1.5%, rounded to the nearest cent.

Updated Training Wage (Ages 16–19)

The training wage for new employees between the ages of 16 and 19 is set at $13.50 per hour through December 31, 2026. Beginning January 1, 2027, the training wage will increase annually by 1.5%, rounded to the nearest cent. The training wage does not apply to seasonal or migrant workers or to emancipated minors.

The training wage is available for up to 90 days from the employee’s date of hire. A single additional 90-day extension is permitted only if the position requires technical, personal, or other skills necessary for the employment and the training program is approved by the Nebraska Commissioner of Labor.

Employers may pay no more than one-fourth of total hours at the training wage in a given period. Employers may not reduce or eliminate existing employees’ hours as a means of replacing them with lower-paid trainees.

What Remains Unchanged

The tipped employee wage structure is unchanged. Employers may continue to pay tipped employees $2.13 per hour, provided that tips bring total compensation to at least the applicable minimum wage. Student-learners participating in bona fide vocational training programs may continue to be paid 75% of the applicable minimum wage.

How:

• Confirm your payroll system reflects the $15.00 minimum wage through December 31, 2026.
• Create a youth wage pay code in your payroll system for employees ages 14 through 15 (non-emancipated), set at $13.50/hour starting July 17, 2026. Build controls to automatically deactivate this pay code at the employee’s 16th birthday or upon any change in emancipation status.
• Create a training wage pay code for eligible new employees ages 16 through 19 (non-seasonal, non-emancipated), set at $13.50/hour through December 31, 2026.
• Audit scheduling to ensure that training-wage hours do not exceed 25% of your total establishment hours in any given period.
• Train managers on the prohibition against reducing existing employees’ hours to substitute lower-paid trainees.
• Verify that tipped employees’ combined cash wages and tips meet or exceed the applicable minimum wage each pay period, and maintain documentation of this calculation.
• Update Nebraska wage posters and any relevant employee handbook sections before July 17, 2026.
• Monitor for the release of the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry’s final rules.

Additional Resources:

LB 528