USA Overtime Laws: FLSA, State Rules, and Time-and-a-Half Pay

Federal FLSA overtime rule

The Fair Labor Standards Act requires overtime pay for many covered non-exempt employees after 40 hours worked in one workweek. The federal overtime rate is at least one and one-half times the employee's regular rate of pay. A workweek is a fixed seven-day period, and overtime generally cannot be avoided by averaging two workweeks together.

The regular rate can be more than a base hourly wage. Non-discretionary bonuses, commissions, shift differentials, and multiple rates may need to be included before the overtime premium is calculated. For those cases, use the regular rate of pay calculator.

States with daily overtime or double-time rules

Most states follow the federal weekly overtime model, but several states add more protective rules. Daily overtime means overtime can start before 40 weekly hours if an employee works a long day. Double time is a higher 2x premium in narrower situations.

Who may be exempt from overtime?

Some employees are exempt from overtime because their salary basis, salary level, and job duties meet an exemption test. Salary alone is not enough. A job title alone is not enough. If the worker is salaried but non-exempt, overtime may still be owed.

Related overtime law guides