This guide explains the US federal (FLSA) rule for a covered, nonexempt employee. It gives estimates, not legal or payroll advice. Your state, your contract or your job classification can change the answer.
Enter your hours for one workweek and your hourly rate, and the overtime pay calculator splits regular and overtime pay.
Estimate overtime payThe federal rule in one sentence
Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, a covered, nonexempt employee must be paid at least one and a half times their regular rate for every hour worked over 40 in a workweek.
Three details in that sentence decide most real cases:
- Workweek means a fixed, regularly recurring period of 168 hours: seven consecutive 24-hour periods. It can start on any day and at any hour, but it doesn’t move around to suit the schedule.
- Each workweek stands alone. The Department of Labor says averaging hours over two or more weeks is not permitted, even if you are paid every two weeks.
- Regular rate is not always your base wage. It includes most pay for the week, such as promised bonuses and the pay from a second job rate.
The federal law doesn’t require extra pay for weekends, holidays or long days as such. Those hours only earn overtime if they take the week past 40.
How to calculate overtime pay
- Add up the hours worked in the workweek. Use exact hours and minutes, then convert to decimals. Paid vacation or holiday hours usually aren’t hours worked.
- Work out the regular rate. Divide all the straight-time pay for the week (wages plus any promised bonus) by the total hours worked.
- Find the overtime hours. Total hours minus 40. If the answer is zero or less, there is no federal overtime that week.
- Add the overtime premium. Pay for every hour at straight time, plus half the regular rate for each overtime hour. With one hourly rate this is the same as 40 hours at the rate plus overtime hours at 1.5 times the rate.
Example 1: one hourly rate
$18.00 an hour, 46 hours in the workweek.
Regular: 40 × $18.00 = $720.00
Overtime: 6 × ($18.00 × 1.5) = 6 × $27.00 = $162.00
Total: $720.00 + $162.00 = $882.00
Example 2: a two-week pay period
$20.00 an hour, paid every two weeks. Week one is 50 hours and week two is 30 hours, so 80 hours in total.
| Hours | Regular pay | Overtime pay | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | 50 | 40 × $20 = $800 | 10 × $30 = $300 | $1,100 |
| Week 2 | 30 | 30 × $20 = $600 | none | $600 |
| Pay period | 80 | $1,700 |
Averaging the two weeks to 40 hours each would give 80 × $20 = $1,600, which underpays by $100. Overtime is worked out for each week separately, however the pay period is set up.
Example 3: two pay rates in one week
30 hours at $16.00 on one job and 15 hours at $22.00 on another, for the same employer, 45 hours in total. The regular rate is the weighted average of the two.
Straight-time pay: 30 × $16 + 15 × $22 = $480 + $330 = $810.00
Regular rate: $810 ÷ 45 hours = $18.00
Overtime premium: 5 hours × ($18.00 ÷ 2) = $45.00
Total: $810.00 + $45.00 = $855.00
Example 4: a week with a bonus
$15.00 an hour, 45 hours, plus a $90 production bonus that was promised in advance. A promised (non-discretionary) bonus goes into the regular rate. A purely discretionary bonus or a gift doesn’t.
Straight-time pay: 45 × $15 + $90 = $675 + $90 = $765.00
Regular rate: $765 ÷ 45 = $17.00
Overtime premium: 5 × ($17.00 ÷ 2) = 5 × $8.50 = $42.50
Total: $765.00 + $42.50 = $807.50
Leaving the bonus out of the rate gives $802.50, which is $5.00 short. Bonuses paid monthly or quarterly have to be spread back over the weeks they cover, which is beyond a quick estimate.
Example 5: salaried but nonexempt
A salary doesn’t remove overtime rights. What matters is how many hours the salary is meant to cover.
| Weekly salary | Regular rate | Owed for 5 extra hours | Week total |
|---|---|---|---|
| $990 for 45 hours | $990 ÷ 45 = $22.00 | 5 × $11.00 (half-time only) = $55.00 | $1,045.00 |
| $990 for 40 hours | $990 ÷ 40 = $24.75 | 5 × $37.125 (time and a half) = $185.63 | $1,175.63 |
In the first row the salary already pays straight time for all 45 hours, so only the extra half is owed. The Department of Labor’s fact sheet makes the same point: a fixed salary for a week longer than 40 hours doesn’t cover the overtime premium.
When the federal rule isn’t the whole story
- Exempt employees. Some salaried executive, administrative and professional roles are exempt from overtime. Exemption depends on the duties and the salary level, not on the job title or simply on being paid a salary.
- Daily overtime in some states. California, for example, pays time and a half after 8 hours in a workday and double time after 12, with extra rules for the seventh day in a row. Where both state and federal rules apply, employers generally have to follow whichever pays more.
- Breaks and rounding. Short rest breaks count as hours worked. See how to calculate hours worked and the minutes to decimal chart if your hours aren’t whole numbers yet.
To total a week of punches before working out overtime, use the time card calculator.
Sources
- U.S. Department of Labor, Fact Sheet #23: Overtime Pay Requirements of the FLSA. Workweek, no averaging, regular rate, two or more rates, salaried nonexempt
- U.S. Department of Labor, Overtime Pay. Overview, weekends and holidays, exemptions
- California Labor Commissioner, Overtime FAQ. Daily overtime and double time