Overtime refers to two related concepts – working extra hours and the pay obtained for that additional time worked. In most cases, employees who work more than 40 hours in a week must get paid overtime for the extra time. Overtime is usually paid at a higher rate than the employee’s regular pay, often 1.5x their standard rate of pay.
In some other countries, overtime must be paid on Saturdays and Sundays, although this is not the case in the USA. A week is defined as any seven 24-hour periods in a row and does not have to match up to the calendar week. So, if a staff member works 50 hours across Thursday – Thursday, they must be paid for 10 hours’ overtime, even if they worked no more than 40 hours in each calendar week.
