Workers can produce at any hour they agree on, and get paid more than their full pay. Extra hours do not pass by at no extra cost.

When the hours go long, in a day or during a week, the California labor law says the hours count as overtime.

Fair Agreements on Scheduled Hours

The agreement on usual hours keeps a worker secure enough to know the hours ahead of time. Any hours above the agreed limit produce more than the employer agreed. Workers can agree to work more time but regular full pay is a low reward.

Standard Work Hours and Work Weeks

The opportunity to work more than standard California hours not only can produce added results for the business enterprise but also high rewards for the work. Workers covered by Industrial Welfare Commission (IWC) orders earn overtime pay.

Successfully working more than 8 hours in a day or 40 hours in a work week earns one and a half times the worker's regular pay rate. The first 8 hours on the seventh consecutive work day during a week earns time and a half pay.

Double time at two times the regular pay rate is earned when the worker produces far past the time planned. Work hours more than 12 hours in a workday earn double time pay. The hours past the 8th hour on the seventh consecutive workday in a 40 hours workweek count as double time.

Adults and minors 16 or 17 years old not required to attend school can earn the overtime pay for above standard hours.

Work Hours

A work day is 24 straight hours that begin at the same time on each calendar day. The work day begins at any time of a day. The time does not have to be the same time the employee's shift begins.

An employer can choose different scheduled work hours for different employees.

A work hour is sixty minutes time the worker actually works. A usual work hour is an hour the worker works during a regularly scheduled work day.

Employers can make a permanent change to a work day.

Work Week

A work week is seven consecutive days starting on the same calendar day each week. The week begins at any hour on any day. The beginning and end stay the same each week. Hours total 168 during the 7 days.

An employer can choose different scheduled work weeks for different employees.

Usual work hours are worked during a regularly scheduled work week.

Employers can make a permanent change to a work week.

Regular Rate of Pay

During usual hours, the worker is secure in pay. The wages paid for each hour of work in a 40 hour work week is the regular rate of pay. Hourly wages, monthly salaries, commissions, and piece rate pay all count.

Bonuses that reward worker for performing their work responsibilities are part of total regular pay. Typically, these bonuses are paid for hours worked, production, or proficiency. Bonuses chosen for special reasons are not part of regular pay. Holiday gifts and good service bonuses are typical discretionary bonuses that do not count.

Other common payments not counted in the total pay used for overtime are expense reimbursements and pay for periods the worker did not actually work. Typical time off work days are vacation days, holidays, and sick days. Hours the employer gave the worker nothing to do also do not count.

Premium pay for work on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays is counted separately.

The regular rate is the usual pay paid out during a 40 hour work week. The rate calculation depends on the type of pay. An hourly pay is the regular rate.

A salary for a month is multiplied times 12 to get annual pay. The annual pay is divided by 52 weeks to get weekly pay. The weekly pay is divided by the legal maximum hours of 40 hours to get the regular rate of pay.

The regular piece rate or commission can be the regular rate of pay. Multiplying either pay earned during the 4 hours after the 8th hour in a day by one and one half produces the overtime pay. Or the total earnings during a work week can be divided by the total hours worked.

A worker earning tow or more rates uses a weighted average to calculate the regular rate. The formula is [(hours 1 x rate 1) + (hours 2 x rate 2)]/(hours 1 + hours 2).

Workers Not Covered

The lines for hours paid a regular pay rate are settled among workers in a profession. Many professions are not covered by the overtime laws when the worker make at least two times the minimum wage and does their own work the way they decide. Six common professions are not covered:

• Executives in charge of an enterprise or department division that direct workers.
• Administrative assistants to executive and high level administrators that use their discretion and independent judgment to exercise powers delegated to them by the executive or administrator. (E.g. tax expert, sales research, and statisticians).
• Specialists or employees on special assignment. (E.g. buyers and field representatives).
• Professionals licensed or certified by the state that work in law, medicine, dentistry, optometry, architecture, engineering, teaching, or accounting.
• Professionals that work in a learned or artistic professional. (E.g. Science researcher with a masters degree, musician).
• Professionals that do intellectual work.

Some of the other uncovered professions.

• Outside salespersons
• Highly skilled and proficient computer software workers that do intellectual or creative work and use their discretion and independent judgment
• Government employees that work for a state, city, county, or special district
• Workers covered by a collective bargaining agreement that states the hours, a premium overtime pay rate, and a regular pay rate at least 30 percent above the state minimum wage
• Drivers with hours regulated by federal or state code
• Airline workers that volunteer to temporarily work a schedule between 40 and 60 hours a week
• Taxi drivers
• Sheepherders
• Professional actors
• Camp counselors
• Personal attendants
• Babysitters under 18
• A citizen working in national service, such as AmeriCorps.

An employer's family members can work at any hours they agree on. The overtime laws do not cover parents, spouses, children, or adopted children.

Workers With Arranged Schedules and Overtime

The law does not rule out agreements on an hours schedule made between workers and an employer. A two thirds majority of workers in a work unit can cast secret ballots to agree to a 40 hour work week schedule with up to 10 hour work days. Overtime pay at one and half times the regular rate then is not paid until after the 10th hours is worked or the another day is worked past the agreed alternative schedule. Double pay is paid for hours past the 12th hour on a scheduled day and hours past the 8th hour on a day past the regular agreed days.

Schedules have already been settled for many workers at the regular hours that fit the work done. The typical overtime pay rules for the standard hours do not cover these workers. They have their own overtime arrangements.

• Workers in the healthcare industry that have agreed to an alternative schedule with work days between 10 and 12 hours do not get paid time and half but do get double time for wok past the 12th hour.
• Minors get one and half times the regular rate for the hours worked on the sixth consecutive workday
• Camp counselors can work up to 54 hours or six days in a week and not get overtime.
• Ambulance drivers and attendants that work scheduled 24 hour shifts do not get overtime

These are only four of the groups of workers that have separate arrangements.

Covered Overtime

Both overtime the employer asks from the worker and overtime the worker worked without permission and charged must be paid at an overtime rate. The employer and worker do not have to agree first.

But, the employee has the responsibility to tell the employer the overtime hours. An employer is responsible for knowing the hours worked. If an employee keeps the employer from knowing the overtime hours worked, the employer does not have to pay the overtime rate.

Required Overtime

Employers are allowed to say a worker has to work overtime.

Payday

Pay earned during overtime hours must be paid on the next payday scheduled for the regular pay.

Carpool Commuting Time

Time spent commuting in a carpool does not count for work hours when the worker uses the employer's vehicle or a vehicle the employer pays for. Riders that share a company car also do not get paid overtime for the time spent commuting.

The Long Stretch Counts For a Heavy Toll On The Clock

Workers can rest secure they will not go unpaid after working a long time. Overtime pay is guaranteed in California.

Sources:

California Labor Code Sections 510 and 511 (2011).

California Department of Labor Standards Enforcement, Exemptions from the Overtime Laws, online (May 19, 2011).

California Department of Labor Standards Enforcement, Exceptions to the General Overtime Laws, online (May 19, 2011).