Pay Periods and Overtime

HRGuyMS · May 2004

Just want to get clarification from my learned colleagues. I am at odds with several of my managers over the overtime provisions of the FLSA. I tell them that we are required to pay overtime for all hours worked in excess of 40 in the workweek. Our workweek is Sunday - Saturday. Our pay periods are 1-15 and 16-31 of each month (employees receive a check on the 15th and 31st). They are saying that if the pay period ends in the middle of the week (Wednesday for example), then they are not required to pay overtime since any hours over 40 in that workweek would be over the two pay periods, and the end of one pay period voids the requirement to pay overtime in that week. I say they are dead wrong and we are in violation of the FLSA. Has anyone encountered this problem? Your comments will be appreciated.

Mentel · May 2004

The date of when an employee gets their check has NOTHING to do with overtime. In some states, you can pay an employee once per month. Overtime is paid after 40 hours have been worked in the week. Period. It does not matter whether they get paid weekly, bi-weekly, twice per month or monthly.

Dan · May 2004

Overtime is calculated on a work week, which you have already defined. Anything over 40 hours in a week is paid at time and a half. It makes no difference what pay period your company uses or when paychecks are issued.

Hatchetman · May 2004

I think your managers are confusing the "hanging work week" with the sometimes used provision in FLSA regs that allows private sector employer to issue FLSA overtime that occurred in the first work week of a pay period via paid comp time in the second work week of the pay period.

For example, if the non-exempt employee works 43 hours in the work week of the 1st (Sunday) through the 7th (Saturday), the employer could do paid comp time for the employee for 4 1/2 hours (3 hours wored OT and 1 1/2 hours as FLSA premium)in the second work week of the pay period (8th through the 14th). FLSA does allow that to be done but the empler would have to do it all in the same pay period and it could not be done if the emplyee did the FLSA overtime in the second work week of the pay period. Remember, the comp time is still done at time and a half of the overtime.

This is a diffiult arrangement so most employers don't do it. Further some states prohibit it. I don't recommend it.

Otherwise, when a "hanging work week" occurs in a pay period, the overtime generally can't/won't be paid out until the next pay period but it will still be at time and a half.

Pay Periods and Overtime

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