Myths 4 & 5: Employers Must Pay Overtime for Nights & Weekends
Welcome back to the newest post in the blog series: 11 Employee Overtime Myths. To help you navigate employee overtime classification, we broke one of our most popular whitepapers down into an easily digestible series. The regulatory environment of employee overtime is very complicated, and often confusing. The content from this series comes from the ComplianceHR whitepaper Overtime Myths. If you would like to receive an email alert for each blog post in this series, please submit this brief form.
Since many industries couldn’t operate without an atypical work schedule, we’ve combined myths four and five into one blog. This post covers whether or not employers should pay overtime for nights & weekends workers.
Overtime Myth 4: Employers Must Pay Overtime for Night Work
Reality:
Many jobs, particularly in the service and healthcare industries, may require employees to work nights. Assuming that the hours do not exceed 40 hours per week, no overtime is necessary for this work schedule.
Remember that federal overtime pay rules apply to employees regardless of shifts or location, except for states that have more stringent policies, but more on that later.
Overtime Myth 5: Employers Must Pay Overtime for Weekend Work
Reality:
As in the case of night work or overnight schedules, working weekends does not automatically trigger overtime. Again, overtime is required only if an employee works more than 40 hours per week.
The same is true for holidays. Requiring an employee to work on Thanksgiving does not require overtime pay (although you aren’t prevented from paying more than the usual amount).
How can I read the rest of the 11 Employee Overtime Myths?
Sign up to receive the email alert when a new employee overtime myth is published. Alternatively, you can check back in to the Resources section of our website weekly, or download the Overtime Myths whitepaper.
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Disclaimer
This blog and the associated whitepaper are should serve as a starting point for educating Human Resources and Legal professionals on certain aspects of legal obligations of employers. It is not a comprehensive resource or a complete explanation of requirements. It offers practical information concerning the subject matter and is provided with the understanding that ComplianceHR is not rendering legal or tax advice, or other professional services. The contents are for general informational purposes only. We urge you to consult your attorney concerning any particular situation and any specific legal questions you may have.
