California Overtime Law & Overtime Calculator (2024)

The US is one of the world's most progressive and culturally diverse countries. Its tremendous size is distributed across 50 states governed by state and federal laws.

Therefore, each state has characteristic laws depending on its:

• Size,
• Political climate,
• Population, and
• Various industries.

California, the most populous US state, incorporates many state laws that often trump federal law in multiple areas, including overtime law.

In the following article, we will go into detail on:

• The correlation between rates and overtime,
• The minimum wage in California,
• Overtime calculations and exemptions, and
• Overtime law, in general, and its intricacies.

General overtime rules in California

According to California overtime law, non-exempt employees are guaranteed overtime pay of one and one-half times (1.5) their regular pay rate.

The California overtime law provisions apply in the following situations:

• If a non-exempt employee 18 years of age or older works more than 8 hours in one day,
• If a non-exempt employee 18 years of age or older works more than 40 hours in one workweek, and
• If a non-exempt employee 18 years of age or older works for more than 6 days in a workweek.

So, for instance, if an employee works 9 hours on Tuesday, they are entitled to get paid for 1 hour of overtime work.

Moreover, if an employee worked for 42 hours in total in the preceding week, they are entitled to get paid for 2 hours of overtime work.

In addition to regular overtime, the state of California has a double time overtime requirement. Employees who work more than 12 hours a day, or more than 8 hours on their 7th consecutive workday, are entitled to an overtime rate double their regular pay.

How do regular rates and overtime rates correlate in California?

The overtime rates in California are based on regular rates. Regular rates are affirmed at the beginning of contractual obligations and can be hourly salaries or fixed salaries.

For hourly employees, regular rates are the rates they get paid per hour during a 40-hour workweek. If they get paid two different rates, overtime is calculated according to the average of the two rates.

For example, suppose the standard hourly rate during the day is $20, and the shift lasts until the evening when an employee is usually compensated $25 (hourly rate during the night). In that case, the average hourly rate will be the standard for their overtime rate: 

($20 + $25) / 2 = $22.5 

For salaried employees, regular rates are calculated by dividing the annual salary by 52 weeks in a year, and 40 work hours in a week, for example: 

$30,000 / 52 / 40 = $14.42

How do you calculate overtime in California?

This article includes a free California payroll calculator to simplify overtime calculations. For simplicity, the calculator consists of the following:

• Regular overtime calculator,
• Double time calculator, 
• Weekly overtime calculator, and
• Bi-weekly overtime calculator.

Let us look at a quick breakdown of how California overtime calculation works:

According to the California overtime law, employers need to pay their employees 1.5 times their regular hourly rate for each hour worked over 8 per day on weekdays and Saturdays.

It is worth mentioning that California Labor Code 551 and California Labor Code 552 prescribe that employees must have at least 1 day of rest during the week. However, in certain situations, they may need to work the 7th consecutive day in a week.

For this purpose, the first 8 hours an employee works on the 7th consecutive day are always counted as 1.5 overtime.

For example, if an employee with a $30 regular hourly rate works 9 hours over 5 weekdays, the employer has to pay $45 for 5 overtime hours (8+1 hours over 5 days). 

That amounts to $465 of weekly pay (8 x $30 + 5 x $45).

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Double time overtime requirements in California

How to calculate double time overtime in California?

Double time pay requirements state that an employer needs to pay employees 2 times their regular rates after 12 hours of work per day. 

Moreover, all the time spent working past 8 hours on the 7th consecutive day of work must also be paid double the regular rates.

For example, an employee with a $30 regular hourly rate working 13 hours for two weekdays will need to be paid $60 for 2 double overtime hours (12+1 hours over two days). 

So, once everything is added, the total sum for our proposed week would be the following:

>Weekly pay — 8 x $30 + 5 x $45 = $465
Weekend pay — 8 x $60 + 8 x $45 + 2 x $60 = $960
Total — $465 + $960 = $1,425

What is the minimum wage in California?

The state of California has its regulations when it comes to the minimum wage. Namely, if the state minimum wage is higher than the federal one prescribed by the FLSA, it will be implemented as it gives more benefits to California employees.

As of January 1, 2024, due to rising costs and inflation, the minimum wage that California employers will have to pay amounts to $16.00 per hour. 

However, fast-food restaurant and healthcare facility workers will have a higher minimum wage of $20.00 per hour. This rule will become effective for fast-food restaurants on April 1, 2024, and for healthcare facilities on June 1, 2024.

In previous years, businesses that employed 25 or fewer employees had a lower minimum wage rate than the ones with more workers. However, since 2023, all rates have been the same for all businesses. 

Some states count tips employees receive towards minimum wages. This is not the case in California, where tips are NOT counted towards the minimum wage.

In addition to California's overall higher minimum wage (the official US minimum wage according to federal law is $7.25), some California jurisdictions also have their local minimum wages per hour (effective January 1st, 2024):

• $16.50 — Oakland,
• $19.08 — West Hollywood,
• $18.07 — San Francisco,
• $16.78 — Los Angeles (city),
• $16.85 — San Diego,
• $18.75 — Mountain View, and
• $17.55 — San Jose.

What is California Labor Code 511?

Some sections of the California overtime law treat the matter of overtime differently.

According to the California Labor Code Section 511, an employer may require the employees to work more than 8 hours per day as a norm. 

Namely, they may schedule 10-hour shifts for 4 days in a week. In such a case, employees are NOT entitled to be paid 1.5 overtime for the 2 extra hours, considering that they are not expected to work only 8 hours in the first place. Moreover, they are still working at most 40 hours per week.

However, the employer will first need to present the case for such an alternative workweek schedule in front of employees in their work unit. 

If they work up to 12 hours per day during their 10-hour shifts, they will be paid 1.5 times their regular hourly rates for those 2 extra hours. On the other hand, if they work more than 12 hours, they are eligible for double overtime pay.

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Who is exempt from overtime in California?

According to the FLSA, non-exempt employees are entitled to overtime compensation, while exempt employees are not.

Furthermore, according to the California Labor Law, employees are exempt if they:

• Get paid a monthly salary of no less than 2 times the California minimum wage,
• Are engaged in specific fields of work: creative, intellectual, or managerial,
• Are engaged in work that requires discretion, and
• Are engaged in work that requires independent judgment.

Apart from these conditions, certain types of occupations are always usually counted as exempt:

• Commissioned employees,
• People working in administration,
• Executives,
• Computer professionals paid on an hourly basis,
• Outside salespeople,
• Employees that are a parent, child, or spouse of the employer,
• People partaking in a national service program,
• Chauffeurs that have their work hours regulated by the U.S Department of Transportation Code of Federal Regulation, Title 49,
• Workers protected by a collective bargaining agreement,
• Airline workers with more than 40 but less than 60 work hours per week,
• Carnival ride employees working on a traveling carnival,
• Workers employed on a commercial fishing boat,
• Broadcasters, news editors, or chief engineers working on a radio or television station in a city of fewer than 25,000 people,
• Personal helpers not covered by the Domestic Worker Bill of Rights,
• Babysitters under 18,
• Motion picture projectionists,
• Taxicab drivers,
• Actors, and 
• State employees.

In addition to this list, union employees are also not eligible for 1.5 and double overtime — due to their unions usually prescribing different overtime rates — usually $3.30 per overtime hour.

Unless the employer is absolutely certain that the employee should be classified as exempt (per all the rules), the employee in question must be classified as non-exempt.

Do salaried employees receive overtime in California?

It depends on whether they are classified as exempt or non-exempt from the Federal Labor Standards Act. 

Usually, non-exempt employees are the ones paid by the hour. But, some salaried employees may also be non-exempt:

• Non-exempt salaried employees ARE entitled to overtime pay, and
• Exempt salaried employees are NOT entitled to overtime pay.

If salaried employees are getting paid at least twice the minimum hourly wage for a 40-hour workweek, they are exempt from getting paid for overtime. However, they cannot be exempt from overtime if they are not getting paid as much.

In numbers, that amounts to $66,560 per year and is the same for companies with fewer than 25 or more than 25 employees — 2 x $16 (minimum wage) x 40 hours per week x 52 weeks per year.

So, if an employee currently makes less than $66,560 per year, they qualify as a non-exempt employee who is entitled to be paid overtime — unless they fall under exempt employees based on their position at work or choice of profession.

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Overtime law changes in California — flat bonuses

The new overtime law in California is tied to calculating employee weekly pay based on flat bonuses they receive for overtime.

The following new law was established after the ruling in the Alvarado v. Dart Container Corp. of California case. The case was caused by a dispute in the amount employees in Dart Container Corp. were supposed to receive as a bonus for completing their weekend shifts.

To explain the new law (and its difference with old practices), let's take the following numbers for our example calculations:

• $25 hourly rate,
• 50 hours worked in total, and
• A flat bonus of $200 as a base.

Dart Container Corp. total pay calculations

Dart Container Corp. used the federal formula to calculate the weekly pay of employees — based on the total number of hours worked.

They calculated the regular pay rate by multiplying the regular rate per hour with the total number of hours worked per week:

$25 x 50 = $1,250

Then, they added this weekly amount to the received bonus, and divided it by the number of total hours worked:

($1,250 + $200) / 50 = $29

According to the FLSA and the overtime rate for the employee ($29 x 1.5 = $43.5), the employee would then be entitled to an amount of $1,595 for that week (40 x $29 + 10 x $43.5).

However, that turned out to be a legally problematic calculation.

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Alvarado's total pay calculations

The other party in the case, Hector Alvarado, complained that the Dart Container Corp. was underpaying its employees because it wasn't following the California's Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE) Manual.

According to Alvarado (and the said Manual), Dart Container Corp. should have used only the number of non-overtime hours worked for the divisions, and not the total.

If we take the same numbers from the previous example, that means $1,450 (weekly pay plus bonus) should be divided by 40 and not 50: 

($1,250 + $200) / 40 = $36.25.

So, a regular rate is $36.25.

Which amounts to $1,993.8 of total weekly pay owed:

$36.25 x 40 = $1,450 — regular rate compensation

$54.38 x 10 = $543.8 — overtime rate compensation

$543.8 + $1.450 = $1,993.8 — total

The ruling of Alvarado v. The Dart Container Corp. of California case was added to the California overtime law — and all overtime based on flat-bonuses should be calculated accordingly.

What else do you need to know about overtime in California

Here are some additional overtime information in California that might be of use to you:

• Under certain circumstances, it may be illegal to prescribe mandatory overtime (even when it is properly paid),
• The employee's right to collect overtime pay cannot be waived,
• The amount the employees collect for overtime — 1.5 times more for >8 hours and 2 times more for >12 hours — cannot be waived,
• Commute time does not count towards regular work time or overtime,
• Travel time for merchandisers counts as work time, except the time they commute to and from their homes,
• Time spent traveling for business may count towards overtime — if it makes the employee accrue more than 40 work hours per week or 8 hours per day (such as conferences, seminars, sales meetings, and trainings),
• If the employer knows the employee is working overtime, even if this time is not officially specified in the timesheet, the employee is still entitled to be paid for this overtime,
• California law does not require the employees to work more than 72 hours per week — i.e. they CAN legally refuse to work more than 72 hours during a week without being sanctioned by their employers,
• Paid rest breaks ARE included when calculating overtime (employees in California are entitled to 10-minute breaks after every 4 hours of work and 30-minute breaks after every 5 hours), and
• On-call time may count towards overtime if it makes the employee accrue more than 40 hours of work per week or 8 hours of work per day.

Frequently asked questions about overtime in California

Throughout this article, we have covered the most important aspects of California's overtime law. Nonetheless, we have included an FAQ section with additional questions about California overtime calculation to make this guide as comprehensive as possible.

Is anything over 40 hours overtime in California?

Yes. Non-exempt employees who work more than 40 hours in a workweek are qualified for overtime pay of one and one-half (1.5) times their regular pay rate.

What is the “8 and 80” rule for overtime in California?

The “8 and 80” overtime rule is used in hospitals and residential care facilities as they use a 14-day work period instead of the standard 40-hour workweek. Under this law, employers must pay overtime of 1.5 times the regular pay rate to employees who work more than 8 hours a day and 80 hours in 14 days.

Can you work four 10-hour shifts without overtime in California?

Yes, this is an alternative workweek schedule known as a 4/10 work schedule. Employees who work 10 hours in a workday and 4 days in a workweek are not entitled to overtime pay. However, this is only the case if they were not initially expected to work 8 hours a day.

Are 12-hour shifts legal in California?

Yes, 12-hour shifts are legal in California. However, employees who work more than 12 hours a day are qualified for overtime pay double their regular pay rate for those extra hours.

Is it legal to work 16 hours a day in California?

Yes, it is legal for employees to work 16 hours a day as long as they are properly compensated for the overtime hours. Nonetheless, employees can refuse to work for more than 72 hours in a workweek.

How to track overtime hours in California?

As we’ve seen, California has an abundance of laws that make it quite difficult to track overtime, especially if you plan on doing mental math. Luckily, modern software has advanced to the point where there’s no need to do anything on your own.

Nowadays, all you have to do is input the variables, such as hours worked and the amount of your hourly wage, and time tracking software will do the rest for you.

Our recommendation? Try Clockify and see what the buzz is all about.

Tracking overtime with Clockify

Clockify helps you track the time you spend on individual tasks and projects — both regular hours and overtime.

To have your pay automatically calculated based on your hours worked, all you need to do is specify your hourly rates and mark each time entry you make for work during work hours as billable. Then, you'll be able to view your earnings in the Reports section of the app.

How to calculate billable hours

Let's see how tracking overtime works if you have a regular rate of $20 per hour, for instance. 

For this purpose, we'll need to create 3 projects:

• One for your regular hours, 
• One for your 1.5 overtime, and 
• One for your double overtime.

First, create a project for your Regular Hours, and define your regular hourly rate for it ($20). Here, you'll be tracking your first 8 hours per day.

Then, create a separate project for your 1.5 overtime, and define your 1.5 overtime hourly rate (1.5 x $20 = $30).

Here, you'll be tracking the time you spend working past 8 hours per day, but less than 12 hours per day, and the first 8 hours you spend working on the 7th consecutive day of work.

Next, create a separate project for your Double Overtime, and define your 2 overtime hourly rate (2 x $20 = $40).

Here, you'll be tracking the time you spend working past 12 hours per day, and all time spent working past the first 8 hours on the 7th consecutive day of work.

As an alternative to tracking time in real-time in the Time Tracking page, you can also add time manually on the same page, or add it manually in the app's timesheet page.

For the purpose of adding time manually in the timesheet, you can select the same 3 projects you've previously created.

Managing the overtime tracked with Clockify

After adding your time for that week, you can run regular Visual Reports to see how much time you've spent working overtime and regular hours for the whole week.

After all, you don't want to overwork yourself to burnout or realize that you're working more than what your body and mind are allowing you to.

This way, you'll also get a comprehensive breakdown of your work hours and pay.

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You can further classify your time entries in Clockify with:

• Tags,
• Projects, 
• Clients, and 
• Tasks.

However, if you're just looking to calculate your overtime hours and pay in general for each day, the first 3 steps will always be more than enough. 

You'll get your regular, 1.5 overtime, and double overtime hours calculated according to California overtime law — fast and with complete precision.