Wage Rates in American Samoa

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), applies generally to employment within American Samoa as it does to employment within the United States. The minimum wage rates for American Samoa are set by a special industry committee (29 U.S.C. 205, 29 C.F.R. Part 511) appointed by the U.S. Department of Labor, as required by the Act. The rates are set for particular industries, not for an employee's particular occupation. The rates are minimum rates (29 U.S.C. 206(a)(3)); an employer may choose to pay an employee at a rate higher than the rate(s) for its industry.

The Act contains a number of additional requirements, including the payment of premium rates to certain covered employees who work more than 40 hours in a workweek (29 U.S.C. 207), limitations on the employment of minors, and provisions relating to the Act's coverage and exceptions to and exemptions from some of the Act's general requirements.

Please be advised that an employer must pay all its employees, including casual and seasonal laborers, at a rate at least in the amount prescribed for the employer's industry. This applies even though an employee's job might appear to better correspond to the description of another industry classification. For example, an employee hired by a maritime shipping agency to provide duplication services must be paid at least the minimum rate set for the maritime shipping classification, not the lower rate that would apply to the same work if performed by an employee within the printing industry.

Industry definitions and applicable wage rates:
(29 C.F.R. Part 697, 29 U.S.C. 208, 29 U.S.C. 210(a)

Every employer of employees subject to the Fair Labor Standards Act's minimum wage provisions must post, and keep posted, a notice explaining the Act in a conspicuous place in all of their establishments so as to permit employees to readily read it. The content of the notice is prescribed by the Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor and is included in the Minimum Wage Poster for use by American Samoa employers (PDF 39K). You can view and print it using the free Adobe Acrobat® Reader™. The poster has been formatted to fit on a single, legal sized (8 1/2 inch by 14 inch) page. This approved copy has been adapted from the standard FLSA poster with modifications. It addresses the Act's particular application to employment in American Samoa and is made available for informational purposes and for employers to use as posters.

Contact information: If you have any questions concerning the federal wage rates or other FLSA issues please contact any of the Wage and Hour Division offices listed below for assistance.

300 Ala Moana Blvd., Room 7225, Honolulu, HI 96850
808-541-1361

455 Market St., Suite 800, San Francisco, CA 94105
415-744-5590

60 South Market St., Suite 420, San Jose, CA 95113-2354
408-291-7730

For additional information, visit our Wage-Hour website:
http://www.wagehour.dol.gov and/or call Wage-Hour toll-free information and help line, available 8am to 5pm in your time zone, 1-866-4USWAGE (1-866-487-9243).

This web page is intended as general information only and does not carry the force of legal opinion.

The Department of Labor is providing this information as a public service. This information and related materials are presented to give the public access to information on Department of Labor programs. You should be aware that, while we try to keep the information timely and accurate, there will often be a delay between official publications of the materials and the modification of these pages. Therefore, we make no express or implied guarantees. The Federal Register and the Code of Federal Regulations remain the official source for regulatory information published by the Department of Labor. We will make every effort to correct errors brought to our attention.