Wage & Hour Rules for Home Care Agencies in Florida

Minimum wage (2026). $14.00/hour through September 29, 2026; $15.00/hour effective September 30, 2026 (final step of the 2020 Amendment 2 schedule, then annual inflation indexing resumes). Source ↗

Constitutional enforcement. Florida's minimum wage is in the state constitution (Art. X, §24) and gives workers a direct private right of action with double damages for unpaid minimum wages — a real exposure for agencies paying flat visit rates. Source ↗

Overtime. No state overtime law; FLSA 1.5x over 40 applies to agency caregivers. (An old statute, Fla. Stat. 448.01, gives manual laborers extra pay beyond 10 hours/day absent a written contract, but it is rarely applied to home care.) Source ↗

Paid sick leave & preemption. No paid sick leave requirement, and Fla. Stat. 218.077 preempts cities and counties from mandating local minimum wages or benefits like sick leave for private employers — a uniform statewide floor for multi-county agencies. Source ↗

Live-in caregivers. Florida follows federal definitions, so under the 2013 federal Home Care Rule agencies cannot claim the live-in or companionship exemptions; the state constitutional minimum wage also applies to those workers. Source ↗

Tip/credit note. The state minimum wage applies to all FLSA-covered employees; Florida allows only a $3.02 tip credit (irrelevant for caregivers, who must receive the full cash minimum). Source ↗

FLSA coverage. Caregivers employed by home care agencies are covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act: federal minimum wage ($7.25) and overtime apply, because agencies are 'third-party employers' of domestic service workers. Source ↗

2013 Home Care Rule. Under the 2013 Home Care Rule (29 CFR 552.109), third-party employers such as home care agencies may NOT claim the FLSA companionship-services or live-in domestic worker exemptions — only the individual, family, or household using the services can claim them. Source ↗

Rescission proposal status (July 2026). On July 2, 2025 DOL proposed rescinding the 2013 Home Care Rule (comments closed Sept. 2, 2025), but as of July 2026 no final rule has issued — the 2013 rule remains legally in effect. Field Assistance Bulletin 2025-4 (July 25, 2025) directed WHD staff to pause enforcement of the rule against third-party agencies, but the FAB does not affect private lawsuits by caregivers, which can still recover back overtime plus liquidated damages. Source ↗

Sixth Circuit upholds rule (2026). In April 2026 the Sixth Circuit (DOL v. Americare Healthcare Services) upheld the 2013 Home Care Rule as a valid exercise of authority Congress expressly delegated to DOL, even post-Loper Bright. Practical takeaway for agencies: keep paying minimum wage and time-and-a-half overtime to caregivers unless and until a final rescission rule takes effect. Source ↗

Overtime & travel time. Agency caregivers must receive 1.5x their regular rate for hours over 40 per workweek, and travel time between clients during the workday is compensable hours worked (commuting to the first client and home from the last is not). Source ↗

Sleep time on 24-hour shifts. For shifts of 24 hours or more, an employer and live-in or shift caregiver may agree to exclude a bona fide sleep period of up to 8 hours if adequate sleeping facilities are provided and the worker usually gets at least 5 hours of uninterrupted sleep; interruptions for work must be paid. On shifts under 24 hours, all time on duty — including permitted sleep — is compensable. Source ↗