Tipping in Chicago
A tip here is wage, not a bonus, and a service charge on the bill is not a tip.
Under federal law an employer must pay a tipped worker at least 2.13 dollars an hour in cash wage, claiming a tip credit of up to 5.12 dollars against the 7.25 dollar federal minimum. The tip is not topping up a normal wage, it is most of the wage.
Illinois sets a higher floor than the federal one. The state minimum wage is 15.00 dollars an hour, and an employer where gratuities are paid may pay 60 per cent of it, which is 9.00 dollars an hour. The gap is still expected to come from the customer.
A compulsory charge for service, for example 15 per cent of the bill, is not considered a tip under the FLSA. Sums distributed from service charges may be used to satisfy the employer's minimum wage and overtime obligations, so a service charge already on the bill is not evidence that the staff have been tipped.
Federal law defines a tipped employee as one engaged in an occupation in which they customarily and regularly receive more than 30 dollars a month in tips, which is the test for who is being paid this way in the first place.
- US Department of Labor: Fact Sheet 15, Tipped Employees Under the FLSA · checked 2026-09-03
- Illinois Department of Labor: Minimum Wage Law · checked 2026-09-03