Federal law only looks at hours per week, but a few states also count hours per day. Here is how daily overtime works and how to schedule around it.
Under the FLSA, a non-exempt employee could work 12 hours on Monday and still be owed no overtime if their weekly total stays at 40 or below. Daily overtime rules change that. In states with daily rules, long days trigger overtime even in short weeks. This matters for businesses with 10- or 12-hour shifts, split schedules or frequent late finishes. See our FLSA overtime rules guide for the federal baseline.
EZTime labor rule alerts flag overtime and missed rest periods before payroll.
| State | Daily overtime rule |
|---|---|
| California | 1.5x after 8 hours in a workday and for the first 8 hours on the seventh consecutive day of work in a workweek; 2x after 12 hours in a workday and after 8 hours on the seventh consecutive day |
| Alaska | 1.5x after 8 hours in a day or 40 in a week, for employers with four or more employees, with some exemptions and flexible schedule options |
| Nevada | 1.5x after 8 hours in any 24-hour period for employees earning less than 1.5 times the state minimum wage, unless a 4×10 schedule is mutually agreed |
| Colorado | 1.5x after 12 hours in a workday or 12 consecutive hours regardless of the workday, as well as after 40 in a workweek |
This is a summary. Each state has exemptions, industry rules and alternative schedule options, and rules can change. Some US territories, such as Puerto Rico, also have daily overtime. Confirm the current rules with the state labor department before scheduling.
In states with both daily and weekly overtime, you generally calculate both and pay whichever results in more overtime, while making sure the same hours are not counted twice. In California, for example, daily overtime hours are not counted again toward the weekly 40-hour total.
| Day | Hours | Regular | 1.5x | 2x |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon | 10 | 8 | 2 | 0 |
| Tue | 10 | 8 | 2 | 0 |
| Wed | 13 | 8 | 4 | 1 |
| Thu | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| Fri | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 47 | 38 | 8 | 1 |
Here the employee has 38 regular hours, so the weekly 40-hour threshold is not exceeded once daily overtime is separated out. All 9 extra hours are paid as daily overtime or double time. Under federal rules alone, only 7 hours would be overtime and none would be double time. Our California overtime calculator helps check scenarios like this.
A workday is usually a consistently defined 24-hour period, which does not have to start at midnight. California defines a workday as any consecutive 24-hour period beginning at the same time each calendar day. Shifts that cross midnight and early starts after late finishes can produce surprises, so define your workday clearly and keep it consistent. Colorado also counts 12 consecutive hours of work even if they span two workdays.
Some states allow alternative arrangements. California permits alternative workweek schedules, such as four 10-hour days, only through a specific employee election process with strict rules. Nevada allows employers and employees to agree on four 10-hour days without daily overtime. Alaska has a voluntary flexible work hour plan approved by the state. These options have formal requirements; informal agreements are usually not enough.
For long-shift patterns, read our article on 12-hour shift schedules.
Daily overtime is impossible to calculate correctly without daily records of start and end times. Weekly totals are not enough. EZTime records every clock-in and clock-out, so hours are available by day and week, and overtime alerts help managers act before a shift runs over the daily threshold. Payroll-ready exports give your payroll provider the daily detail needed for state rules.
If you have employees in several states, apply each state’s rules to the employees working there. An employee who works in more than one state in a week may raise complex questions about which rules apply to which hours. Keep records by location, using GPS or site-based clock-ins where appropriate, and get advice for cross-state situations. Train managers in each state on the local rules, since a schedule that is fine in Texas may create daily overtime in California. EZTime supports multi-location teams with reports by site.
No. The FLSA only requires overtime after 40 hours in a workweek.
California, Alaska, Nevada and Colorado have daily overtime rules, each with its own thresholds and exemptions.
No. You generally calculate both and pay the greater amount, without counting the same hours twice.
Generally 2x the regular rate for hours over 12 in a workday and for hours over 8 on the seventh consecutive day in a workweek.
Only to non-exempt employees. Exempt employees are not owed overtime, though some states have stricter exemption tests.
Generally not informally. Some states allow formal alternative schedules with specific procedures.
EZTime’s labor rule alerts warn about weekly hour limits, short rest between shifts, overtime thresholds and employees who forgot to clock out.