Know The Overtime Pay Rules Employers Must Follow

When you work, you might want to get as many hours as you can. Some employers might balk at this and might even limit the amount of hours you can work. This is partially because of the overtime laws that require employers to pay employees more when they work more than 40 hours per week.

Overtime pay is important for employees because it compensates them at a rate of 1.5 times their normal hourly pay for the extra time they are away from home. There are a few different circumstances in which employees are eligible for overtime pay, so understanding these is imperative for anyone who is in the workforce.

Workers who work more than eight hours per workday are eligible for overtime at a rate of 1.5 times their normal rate for any hours over eight up to the 12th hour. The rate of overtime pay increases to two times the normal rate for any hour beyond the 12th of the workday.

Another instance in which workers are eligible for the overtime pay rate of two times the normal rate of pay is when they work seven consecutive days and clock in for more than eight hours on that seventh day.

There are some exceptions to these laws, so you must find out if your case is exempt from these laws. Making sure that you get the money you are due is important since you can’t be expected to work for less than you are legally due. Even if the overtime wasn’t authorized, you might still be eligible to receive payment for the hours you worked.

Source: State of California, Department of Industrial Relations, “Overtime,” accessed Feb. 28, 2018