General Overview of the FLSA

Under the FLSA, "overtime" generally means time actually worked beyond 40 hours per work week. The normal FLSA "work period" is the "work week" -- 7 consecutive days. Some jobs may be governed by a different FLSA overtime threshold, but such jobs are limited and require specific discussion in other sections of this site.

Time actually worked over 40 hours in a 7 day period (the "work week") is "overtime." Some employers may use the word "overtime" differently. For example, they may describe "time worked outside of the employee's normal schedule" or "time worked over 8 hours in a day." There is nothing wrong with this use of the word "overtime," but that does not change the meaning of the word for FLSA purposes.

Thus, under the FLSA overtime rules, nothing happens unless and until a nonexempt employee has actually worked more than 40 hours in a work week. Stated another way, if an employee's total hours actually worked in a work week are not more than 40, the FLSA overtime rules are not triggered at all. No FLSA overtime pay is due. If, and only if, total hours actually worked exceed 40 in a work week, then the FLSA overtime rules may come into play.

Overtime pay for nonexempt employees is computed based on all the time the employee has actually worked in a work week. All time actually worked counts. Therefore, the first step in the FLSA overtime formula is to determine how much time a nonexempt employee has actually worked in a work week. This means that even if you clock out and keep working or are told that you won't be paid for the hours you work off the clock, you probably have a claim for unpaid wages or unpaid overtime (or both). To understand what hours are counted as "hours worked" see the "What Are 'Hours Worked'" page.

If you have been working off the clock (like attending meeting that don't count as hours worked in a day) and would like to discuss this matter with a lawyer, please call us or fill out our questionnaire and we will call you.