How overtime is calculated
Overtime pay is your regular rate multiplied by the premium — 1.5 for time and a half, 2 for double time — applied to qualifying hours. The subtlety is the definition of "regular rate": it is not simply your base wage. It includes non-discretionary bonuses, shift differentials and commissions, averaged across the week.
Federal floor, state ceilings
The Fair Labor Standards Act sets the national minimum: 1.5× beyond 40 hours per workweek for non-exempt employees. States may be more generous, and several are. California requires daily overtime beyond 8 hours and double time beyond 12, plus premium pay on a seventh consecutive day. Alaska, Nevada and Colorado have their own daily rules. Where federal and state law differ, the more favourable rule applies.
Exempt versus non-exempt
Exemption depends on being paid a salary above a threshold and performing genuinely exempt duties — executive, administrative, professional, outside sales or certain computer roles. A job title alone means nothing. Misclassification is one of the most common wage violations, and back pay claims typically reach back two to three years.
Keep your own records
Employers must maintain time records, but in a dispute your contemporaneous notes carry real weight. Log start and end times, unpaid breaks and any work done off the clock — checking email, travelling between sites, or preparation before a shift, which is often compensable.
The trade worth thinking about
Overtime is the highest-value hour you can work, but the premium fades if it becomes permanent: a schedule built on 48 hours a week has simply become your normal at a slightly better rate. Treat sustained overtime as a signal to renegotiate the base rate rather than a permanent income strategy.