FLSA overtime explained (tied to the calculator)

The Fair Labor Standards Act does not pay daily overtime at the federal level. It pays time and a half for hours over 40 in a single workweek for nonexempt employees. That is the rule in 29 U.S.C. § 207(a)(1) and 29 CFR 778.101.

Calculate a week in the overtime tool →

The federal formula (one employer, one workweek)

A 10-hour Tuesday creates no federal overtime if the week still ends at 40 or less. Two part-time jobs of 30 hours each do not combine to 60 for either employer.

Worked weeks you can re-run in the calculator

| Regular rate | Hours in the week | OT hours | OT pay | Weekly total | |---|---|---|---|---| | $20 | 50 | 10 | $300.00 | $1,100.00 | | $25 | 60 | 20 | $750.00 | $1,750.00 | | $15 | 45 | 5 | $112.50 | $712.50 | | $7.25 (federal minimum) | 50 | 10 | $108.75 | $398.75 | | $30 | 40 | 0 | $0 | $1,200.00 |

Federal minimum wage remains $7.25/hour unless a higher state or local rate applies (DOL WHD). This explainer does not list 50 state overtime statutes.

Exempt vs nonexempt (why the calculator may not apply)

Section 13(a)(1) exempts some executive, administrative, professional, computer, and outside-sales employees who meet salary-basis and duties tests. A job title of “manager” is not enough. After courts vacated the 2024 salary-threshold increase, the federal salary level used with those exemptions returned to $684/week ($35,568/year)—confirm current WHD guidance before you assume exemption.

If you are nonexempt, use the overtime calculator. If you are correctly exempt, that tool’s 1.5× math is the wrong model.

California (and some other states) add daily overtime. That is a different statute. Calcufast’s California tool is separate: California overtime. Do not treat the federal weekly-40 tool as a CA timesheet.

Overtime pay is still wages (FICA)

The extra half-time is wages. Employee FICA (6.2% Social Security up to the $184,500 2026 wage base, plus 1.45% Medicare) applies to overtime the same way it applies to straight time (IRS Topic 751). Estimate the FICA line on the gross week with the FICA calculator. Federal income-tax withholding still follows the W-4—see paycheck take-home.

Regular rate (what this explainer does not rebuild)

WHD’s “regular rate” can include certain bonuses and exclude others (29 CFR Part 778). The on-site calculator takes the hourly regular rate you enter. It does not reconstruct § 207(e) exclusions. If your stub has production bonuses, confirm the regular-rate build with payroll or WHD materials.

What this page is not

• Not a 50-state overtime matrix.
• Not Mexican horas extras or Guatemalan recargo.
• Not a substitute for the DOL eLaws overtime advisor.