Does Amazon Pay Time and a Half? Overtime & Holiday Pay

Yes, in two separate ways. Amazon’s hourly warehouse, delivery station and fulfillment employees are paid time and a half for hours over 40 in a workweek, because federal law requires it. And Amazon says hourly employees earn time and a half when they work an Amazon holiday: New Year’s Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day.

The part that confuses most paychecks is what happens when those two overlap, so most of this guide is about that.

Overtime at Amazon: the legal rule

Hourly associates are non-exempt under the Fair Labor Standards Act. That means every hour over 40 in a workweek is paid at 1.5 times the regular rate. It isn’t a company perk that can change by site or season; it’s the floor set by law.

• The week is counted on its own. Ten hours of overtime one week and a short week the next still pays ten hours of overtime. Hours aren’t averaged across a two-week pay period.
• Incentive pay raises your overtime rate. Peak-season or shift incentives paid per hour or for meeting a target are non-discretionary pay, so they count in your regular rate, and your overtime rate goes up with them (29 CFR 778.208–778.211). Use the time and a half calculator with “Add a bonus” to see the effect.
• Your state can add daily overtime. Amazon associates in California earn overtime after 8 hours in a day and double time after 12; Alaska, Nevada (below $18 an hour) and Colorado (after 12 hours) have daily rules too. Check your state.

Holiday pay at Amazon

Amazon’s published benefits say hourly employees earn time and a half for work on six holidays:

Days not on that list, such as Juneteenth, Presidents Day or Christmas Eve, are paid at your normal rate unless the hours push you past 40 for the week. Federal law doesn’t require any holiday premium; this one is Amazon policy, and policies can differ for seasonal, flex and contracted roles (Delivery Service Partner drivers work for separate companies with their own pay rules). Your offer letter or the A to Z app is the final word for your job.

When a holiday shift is also overtime

People often expect a holiday shift in a long week to pay “time and a half on top of time and a half.” Federal law doesn’t require that. If an employer pays at least 1.5 times for holiday work, it may count that premium toward the overtime it owes for the same week (29 CFR 778.203 and 778.219). An employer can choose to pay more, but the law only guarantees the larger of the two, not both.

Worked example

You earn $20 an hour and work five 10-hour shifts in Thanksgiving week, including 10 hours on Thanksgiving. That’s 50 hours.

The 10 holiday hours at time and a half cover the 10 overtime hours the law requires. If Amazon pays the holiday premium and overtime on the other 10 hours over 40, the week comes to $1,200 instead. Your pay statement will show which: look for separate holiday and overtime lines and add up the hours paid at the higher rate.

Checking your Amazon paycheck

1. Open the pay statement in the A to Z app and add up hours worked for each workweek, not for the whole pay period.
2. For any week over 40 hours, check that the hours over 40 were paid at 1.5 times your rate, including any incentive pay in the rate.
3. For a holiday on the list above, check that the hours you worked that day were paid at 1.5 times.
4. If something is short, raise it with your site’s HR or the A to Z help case first. If it isn’t fixed, you can contact the Department of Labor or your state labor office.

To work out what a week should pay, enter your rate and hours in the time and a half calculator, or use the holiday pay calculator for a holiday week.

Sources

• Benefits for Amazon fulfillment center employees, Amazon (holiday pay)
• Fact Sheet #23: Overtime Pay Requirements of the FLSA, U.S. Department of Labor
• 29 CFR 778.203: Premium pay for holiday work, Code of Federal Regulations