State Overtime Calculator

How does state overtime differ from federal overtime?

Federal law (FLSA §7(a)) requires 1.5× pay for hours over 40 in a workweek. State law layers ADDITIONAL rules on top — California, Alaska, Nevada, and Colorado each have daily-overtime thresholds; California also has double-time after 12 hours per day. The legal rule: when state and federal differ, employers must apply whichever is MORE generous to the employee, hour by hour. A California worker doing 4×12s gets daily OT (state rule) even though their weekly total is 48 (federal would only require 8 hours of OT) — California rules trigger 4 hours of daily-only OT plus 4 hours of weekly OT in some scenarios.

Source: DOL — Overtime Pay

What's the 7th-consecutive-day premium and which states have it?

California and Kentucky require premium pay for ALL hours worked on the 7th consecutive day in a workweek, regardless of weekly hours. California pays 1.5× for the first 8 hours and 2× after; Kentucky pays 1.5× flat for all hours on the 7th day. The rule applies even if the employee worked only short shifts earlier in the week — if every day Sun–Sat has hours, the 7th day triggers the premium. This is one of the most overlooked rules in California wage-and-hour compliance.

Source: California DIR — Overtime

When does California double-time kick in?

California Labor Code §510 requires 2× pay (double-time) after 12 hours in a single workday, and after 8 hours on the 7th consecutive day in a workweek. The 12-hour rule is unique to California — no other state requires general double-time for daily hours. A 14-hour shift in California breaks down: 8 hours regular, 4 hours at 1.5×, 2 hours at 2×. Worth noting: California ALSO requires daily OT to start after 8 hours, so the 1.5× and 2× rates stack across the same shift.

Source: California Labor Code §510

Does Nevada's daily-overtime rule apply to everyone?

No. Nevada's daily-overtime rule (NRS 608.018) only applies to employees earning LESS than 1.5× the state minimum wage — roughly $18/hour at 2026 rates. Workers above that threshold get federal weekly-only overtime. This calculator assumes the daily rule applies to keep the math straightforward; for high-wage Nevada workers, set the state to 'Federal' to model weekly-only overtime correctly.

Source: Nevada Labor Commissioner — Overtime

Why are only 5 states modeled?

These are the states whose general (non-industry-specific) overtime rules MEANINGFULLY differ from federal — California (daily OT, double-time, 7th-day), Alaska (daily OT), Nevada (daily OT for lower earners), Colorado (daily OT after 12), and Kentucky (7th-day premium). Everyone else follows federal weekly-OT-only, with the exception of industry-specific carve-outs (Oregon manufacturing, Connecticut hospitality, Hawaii public works) that need shift-type inputs this calculator doesn't surface. If you're in one of those industries, your overtime is governed by the carve-out, not the general rule — see the linked article for details.

How does this handle salaried-exempt employees?

It doesn't. The calculator assumes the worker is non-exempt and entitled to overtime. Salaried workers must meet BOTH the salary-basis test ($684/week federal, $1,128/week California 2025) AND the duties test (executive, administrative, professional, computer, outside sales) to be exempt. Misclassification is the most expensive payroll mistake — California auto-converts misclassified exempts to non-exempt and triggers up to 4 years of back overtime + penalties. If unsure about classification, the answer is usually "non-exempt."

Source: DOL — Fact Sheet #17A: Exemptions