Biweekly overtime, counted week by week
Being paid every two weeks does not make overtime a two-week calculation. Under the U.S. Fair Labor Standards Act, overtime is worked out for each workweek on its own: a long week is not cancelled by a short one, even when the pay period adds up to 80 hours. A period of 48:10 + 32:00 has 8:10 of overtime, not 0:10.
Open this example in the calculator
The rule
The Department of Labor’s overtime regulations say the Act takes a single workweek as its standard and “does not permit averaging of hours over 2 or more weeks” (29 CFR 778.104). A workweek is a fixed, regularly recurring period of 168 hours, seven consecutive 24-hour periods, and it can start on any day and at any hour (29 CFR 778.105). The pay period only decides when wages are paid: overtime earned in a workweek is generally due on the regular payday for the period in which that week ends (29 CFR 778.106). The DOL’s Fact Sheet #23 summarises the same rules.
Worked example: the inputs
A pay period starting Monday 12 October 2026, workweeks running Monday to Sunday. Pay rule: $20 an hour, overtime after 40 hours a week at 1.5× ($30 an hour). Saturday 17 October is a night shift that ends on Sunday morning and counts on Saturday.
| Week 1 | In | Out | Break | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon Oct 12 | 09:00 | 17:30 | 30 | 8:00 |
| Tue Oct 13 | 08:45 | 17:15 | 30 | 8:00 |
| Wed Oct 14 | 09:00 | 18:20 | 40 | 8:40 |
| Thu Oct 15 | 09:00 | 17:30 | 30 | 8:00 |
| Fri Oct 16 | 07:30 | 16:00 | 30 | 8:00 |
| Sat Oct 17 | 22:00 | 06:15 | 45 | 7:30 |
| Sun Oct 18 | — | — | — | off |
| Week 1 total | 48:10 |
| Week 2 | In | Out | Break | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon Oct 19 | 09:00 | 17:30 | 30 | 8:00 |
| Tue Oct 20 | 09:00 | 17:30 | 30 | 8:00 |
| Wed Oct 21 | 09:00 | 17:30 | 30 | 8:00 |
| Thu Oct 22 | 09:00 | 17:30 | 30 | 8:00 |
| Fri Oct 23 | — | — | — | off |
| Sat Oct 24 | — | — | — | off |
| Sun Oct 25 | — | — | — | off |
| Week 2 total | 32:00 |
Step by step
- Total each workweek. Week 1 is 48 hours 10 minutes (48.17 h). Week 2 is 32 hours (32.00 h).
- Find the overtime in each week. Week 1: 48:10 − 40:00 = 8:10 of overtime. Week 2: 32:00 is under 40, so 0:00. Week 2’s spare 8 hours do not offset week 1.
- Regular pay. 40:00 in week 1 + 32:00 in week 2 = 72 regular hours × $20 = $1,440.00.
- Overtime pay. 8 hours 10 minutes = 8.1667 h × $30 = $245.00. Work from minutes (490 min × $0.50) or keep four decimals; rounding 8.1667 to 8.17 first would give $245.10.
- Gross for the pay period: $1,440.00 + $245.00 = $1,685.00 for 80:10 = 80.17 hours.
The averaging mistake, in dollars
| Overtime hours | Gross pay | |
|---|---|---|
| Week by week (FLSA) | 8:10 | $1,685.00 |
| Averaged over 80 hours | 0:10 | 80 × $20 + 10 min × $30/h = $1,605.00 |
Treating the period as one 80-hour block underpays by $80.00: the half-time premium ($10) on the 8 hours that the average hides.
Doing it in Shiftpad
Set Pay period to 2 weeks, or use the biweekly time card calculator. The weekly limit in Overtime after … h / week is applied to week 1 and week 2 separately, and each week gets a subtotal row (8:10 above your 40 h limit, within your 40 h limit). The CSV has the same per-week lines. If a daily limit also applies to you, fill in and after … h / day: hours above the daily limit are counted first, then any remaining hours above the weekly limit, week by week. With an 8-hour daily limit this example still has 8:10 of overtime (0:40 on Wednesday, then 7:30 above 40 in week 1).
When this is not the whole answer
- Hospitals and residential care. By prior agreement, these employers may use a 14-day period with overtime after 8 hours a day and 80 hours in the period (the “8 and 80” system, 29 CFR 778.601). Shiftpad does not model it.
- Regular rate. Overtime is 1.5 times the regular rate, which can include shift differentials and non-discretionary bonuses. Shiftpad multiplies the hourly rate you enter.
- State law and contracts. Some states add daily overtime or other rules, and union contracts can be more generous. Exempt employees are outside these overtime rules altogether.
This is arithmetic for estimating hours and pay. It is not payroll or wage-compliance software for any country or state, and it does not give legal advice. Check the rules that apply to you before using a figure for payroll.
More: overnight shifts and daylight saving time · minutes to decimal hours chart · weekly time card calculator