What is overtime pay?

According to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), overtime is any time worked beyond 40 hours in a workweek. If a nonexempt employee puts in overtime hours, the employer must pay overtime wages. Overtime pay is typically more than the regular pay and is classified into two categories:

  • Overtime is one and one-half times the employee’s hourly pay rate for hours worked over 40 each workweek. For example, if an employee earns $18.75 per hour and works 3 hours of overtime, they would earn a total of $84.38 in overtime wages ($18.75 X 1.5 X 3).
  • Double-time is two times the employee’s hourly pay rate for hours worked over 52 each workweek. For example, if an employee earns $18.75 per hour and works 15 hours of overtime, they would earn $337.50 in overtime wages for the first 12 hours of overtime ($18.75 x 1.5 x 12), and would earn $112.50 in double-time wages for the next 3 hours of overtime ($18.75 x 2 x 3).