Overtime is calculated based on a workweek – which is a 7-day period established by your employer. However, semi-monthly pay periods can be confusing when determining overtime pay, due to the way the pay period cuts across workweeks.
Since most months have more than just 4 weeks, or 28 days, a semi-monthly pay period will often include days in 3 separate workweeks.
Here’s an example, as illustrated in the video:
The workweek is Monday to Sunday. Pay Periods run from 1st to the 15th and 16th to the 31st.
During the first workweek covered by the pay period, you worked a total of 50 hours. The first 30 hours were paid on the previous paycheck covering the pay period from the 1st to the 15th. On this paycheck, you will be paid for 10 regular hours and 10 overtime hours for this week.
In the second and third workweek, you worked 45 hours. You will be paid for 40 regular hours and 5 overtime hours. On this paycheck, you will be paid for a total of 110 hours – 90 regular hours and 20 overtime hours.
If you have any doubts as to your entitlement to overtime, you should contact the experts at The Lore Law Firm to find out more about your rights – it’s your time and your money. The review of your circumstances by our overtime pay lawyers is FREE and CONFIDENTIAL and cases are handled on a contingent fee basis, meaning there are no upfront costs and no fees if there is no recovery.
