Time-and-a-Half Definition

Time-and-a-half, or overtime pay, refers to the minimum rate of pay an employee must receive as overtime compensation. It consists of the usual wage the employee would earn in an hour (which must be at least equal to the federal minimum wage), plus one-half that amount, or 150 percent of their wage, for each hour of overtime worked.

Time-and-a-half Extended Definition
Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), any nonexempt employee is entitled to overtime pay not less than 1.5x their regular hourly wage for any amount of time worked over 40 hours per workweek.

The workweek does not need to correspond directly with the calendar week; it is comprised of any fixed and regularly recurring period of seven consecutive 24-hour days, or 168 hours total.

The FLSA does not entitle employees to time-and-a-half pay for hours worked on weekends or holidays, unless working those days causes the employee’s total hours worked during the workweek to exceed 40 hours.

The right to time-and-a-half pay for overtime hours worked cannot be voluntarily waived by the employee. Individual states may have additional laws governing wages and overtime; in the event of a discrepancy between state and federal law, the employee is entitled to whichever compensation is higher.

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Last Updated By

Rachel Blakely-Gray | May 01, 2023