Overtime Rules: Federal 40-Hour Rule and State Daily Overtime
This guide explains the overtime rules the time card calculator can apply, in plain language. It is general information, not legal advice - when in doubt, check your state labor department.
The federal baseline (FLSA)
Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, non-exempt employees earn overtime at 1.5 times their regular rate for all hours worked over 40 in a workweek. A workweek is any fixed 7-day period your employer sets - it does not have to start on Monday. Federal law has no daily overtime: working a 10-hour day is not overtime unless the week goes past 40 hours.
States with daily overtime rules
| State | Daily overtime rule |
|---|---|
| California | 1.5x over 8 h/day; 2x over 12 h/day; 1.5x for the first 8 h on the 7th consecutive workday in a workweek, 2x beyond 8 h that day. |
| Alaska | 1.5x over 8 h/day (employers with 4+ employees), plus the 40 h weekly rule. |
| Nevada | 1.5x over 8 h/day for employees paid less than 1.5x the state minimum wage; higher-paid staff follow the 40 h weekly rule. |
| Colorado | 1.5x over 12 h/day, plus the 40 h weekly rule. |
| Oregon | Daily overtime (over 10 h) applies to mill, factory and manufacturing workers only. |
Everywhere else, the federal 40-hour weekly rule is the only rule for most workers. A few states (like Minnesota) set the weekly line at 48 hours instead of 40 for some employers.
Which rule should I pick in the calculator?
- Weekly: over 40 h - correct for most US workers in most states.
- Daily 8 h + weekly 40 h - closest fit for California and Alaska-style rules. Daily overtime hours are not double-counted toward the weekly threshold.
- No overtime - for salaried/exempt tracking, or when you only need total hours.
Who is "non-exempt"?
Most hourly workers are non-exempt and get overtime. Exempt employees (many salaried executive, administrative, professional and computer roles above a salary threshold) do not. Job title alone does not decide - duties and pay level do. The US Department of Labor overtime page has the current salary thresholds.