Overtime Questions & Answers

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) categorizes employees into either an exempt or non-exempt class. Only the non-exempt workers qualify for overtime pay. Once a non-exempt employee works over 40 hours in any given week, an employer must pay time and a half the employee’s regular rate for the additional hours.

Overtime-exempt workers include executive members, administrative staff, professional employees, salespeople, computer specialists, highly compensated employees, and independent contractors.

Many of the workers in this group usually earn a salary of at least $684 per week or $35,568 annually. Before these new rates came into effect on Jan. 1, 2020, the threshold was $455 weekly or $23,660 annually.

No, FLSA does not require employers to pay you for working during the weekends, holidays, or regular rest days. You should agree with an employer on the extra pay. However, if there are overtime hours locked in during such days, then an employer should compensate you at the legal rate.

While FLSA regulates how employers compensate workers, it does not set the maximum number of hours employees can work. An employer is free to determine how long you work each day or week, as long as you are at least 16 years old.

For younger workers between ages 14 and 15, FLSA restricts the hours of work. Child labor laws vary among states, but generally, young employees can only work from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. During school days, they can work for up to 3 hours per day or 18 hours per week. On non-school days, they are restricted to 8 hours daily or 40 hours weekly.

Yes, the Federal law sets time limits in most states, requiring victims of unpaid overtime to file lawsuits against their employers within two years. For cases involving willful wage violations, the timeframe is three years. Some states like California, Hawaii, New York, and Kentucky have extended periods for recovering unpaid overtime.