You may be surprised to learn that the answer may be no, depending on what you make. The only requirement under federal law is that if the employer chooses to have you bear the cost of the cash register shortage, the deduction cannot take your pay below the minimum wage and/or reduce your overtime compensation. For example, if an employee who is subject to the statutory minimum wage of $7.25 an hour is paid an hourly wage of $7.25, the employer may not make any deduction from the employee's wages for the cash register. However, if you make more than the minimum wage, so that the deduction does not take your pay below the minimum wage, the employer is legally entitled to deduct the cost of the cash register shortage from your pay. For example, if the employee were paid $7.60 an hour and worked 30 hours in the workweek, the maximum amount the employer could legally deduct from the employee's wages would be $10.50 ($.35 X 30 hours). If the employee is paid an hourly wage of $9.25 per hour and worked 30 hours in the workweek, the maximum amount the employer could legally deduct from the employee's wages would be $60.00 ($2.00 X 30 hours), so the full $15.00 deduction for the cash register shortage would be allowed under law. Some states have laws that more narrowly limit the deductions which may be taken for cash-register shortages and other work-related items. For example, some state laws require employers to get written consent from the employee before taking deductions from the employee’s paycheck. Alternatively, some state laws only allow employers to take these deductions from an employee if that employee assumes responsibility for the loss. If you still have questions about your state's laws relating to deductions, then you may wish to contact the agency in your state which handles wage and hour/labor standards violations, listed on our site's state government agencies page.