Guatemala overtime: Q4,000 / 10 day-shift hours → Q250 extra
Overtime (tiempo extraordinario) is regulated by Guatemala's Labor Code (Decree 1441). Work beyond the ordinary workday must be paid with a premium over the regular hourly wage.
In Guatemala, overtime is paid with at least a 50% premium on the ordinary hourly rate. If your regular hour is Q25.00, the minimum overtime hour is Q37.50. This calculator uses monthly salary, shift type, and overtime hours in the month.
Overtime formula
Ordinary hourly rate = Monthly salary ÷ 30 days ÷ ordinary hours of your shift
Overtime hourly rate = Ordinary hourly rate × 1.5
Overtime pay = Overtime hourly rate × Overtime hours worked
Article 121 sets a minimum 50% surcharge on ordinary pay for effective work outside ordinary limits. Article 129 adds that a monthly salary already includes the weekly rest day and the holidays not worked, so a day is worth salary ÷ 30 and the ordinary hour is that day divided by your shift hours (arts. 116 and 117).
How the calculator turns a monthly salary into an hour
| Shift | Reference hours | Hours/day | Days covered by the salary | Monthly divisor (30 × hours) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Day (diurna) | 6:00–18:00 | 8 | 30 | 240 |
| Night (nocturna) | 18:00–6:00 | 6 | 30 | 180 |
| Mixed (mixta) | Spans both | 7 | 30 | 210 |
This tool is educational. Collective agreements, contracts, or internal policies may improve the minimum. Confirm formal claims with HR, the Labor Ministry, or a labor advisor.
Worked examples (Q4,000 monthly)
Day shift
- Ordinary hour: Q4,000 ÷ 30 ÷ 8 = Q4,000 ÷ 240 = Q16.67
- Overtime hour: Q16.67 × 1.5 = Q25.00
- 10 OT hours: Q250.00
Night shift
- Ordinary hour: Q4,000 ÷ 30 ÷ 6 = Q4,000 ÷ 180 = Q22.22
- Overtime hour: Q33.33
- 10 OT hours: Q333.33
Mixed shift
- Ordinary hour: Q4,000 ÷ 30 ÷ 7 = Q4,000 ÷ 210 = Q19.05
- Overtime hour: Q28.57
- 10 OT hours: Q285.71
Quick table: Q4,000 monthly salary (30 days × shift)
| Shift | Ordinary hour | OT hour (1.5×) | 5 OT hours | 10 OT hours | 20 OT hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Day | Q16.67 | Q25.00 | Q125.00 | Q250.00 | Q500.00 |
| Night | Q22.22 | Q33.33 | Q166.67 | Q333.33 | Q666.67 |
| Mixed | Q19.05 | Q28.57 | Q142.86 | Q285.71 | Q571.43 |
Sundays, holidays, and limits
- This tool estimates the Art. 121 minimum: ordinary overtime at 1.5× the ordinary hourly rate.
- Work on a weekly rest day or public holiday (asueto) is a separate count: rest/holiday pay + overtime +50% (arts. 128 and 121). Use holiday worked and seventh day. This page does not apply a flat 2×.
- Daily total should not exceed 12 hours (ordinary + overtime).
- Overtime is generally voluntary, except justified emergencies.
Incentive bonus (Q250)
Decree 37-2001 sets a Q250 monthly incentive bonus for private-sector workers. It is paid separately, is not part of salary for most benefits, and is not ordinary IGSS base: do not fold it into the ordinary hourly base for OT.
Related labor calculators
- Payroll / planilla Guatemala
- Net salary Guatemala
- Liquidación Guatemala
- Severance / finiquito
- IGSS contributions
- Vacation pay
- Aguinaldo
At least a 50% premium (Art. 121): overtime hour = ordinary hour × 1.5.
Because a monthly salary does not pay only the hours worked. Article 129 says that when pay is agreed by the month it "implicitly includes payment for weekly rest days and holidays not worked". A full month is therefore 30 days, and the ordinary hour is salary ÷ 30 ÷ shift hours (arts. 116 and 117): day 240 h, mixed 210 h, night 180 h.
The Code uses the same daily base to pay a worked rest day or holiday: the day is worth salary ÷ 30 and the time worked counts as overtime (arts. 128 and 129). At Q4,000 on the day shift: Q4,000 ÷ 30 = Q133.33 a day, ÷ 8 = Q16.67 an ordinary hour and ×1.5 = Q25.00 an overtime hour; 10 hours = Q250.00. Averaging 44 h × 52 ÷ 12 (≈190.67 h) spreads the salary over effective hours only; it is not a statutory divisor and pushes the hour above its daily value. External reference, not an equivalence: the minimum-wage table publishes the daily rate as monthly × 12 ÷ 365, about 30.42 days per month, a different convention from the ÷ 30 used here. It is not offered as support for the divisor: art. 129 sets the monthly worker's day and art. 121 the premium.
Divide the monthly salary by 30 and then by the ordinary hours of your shift (8 day, 7 mixed, 6 night). For reference: 240 h a month on the day shift, 210 mixed, 180 night. If your contract sets an hourly rate, that rate governs.
On a Q4,000 monthly salary, the minimum overtime hour is Q25.00 on the day shift, Q33.33 on the night shift, and Q28.57 on the mixed shift (art. 121: ×1.5 of the ordinary hour).
No. This calculator applies the Art. 121 minimum on ordinary overtime: 1.5×. If you work a holiday or weekly rest day, the Code still pays the rest day and counts the hours as overtime (arts. 128 and 121). A full daytime holiday is 2.5× daily, not a flat 2×. Use holiday worked or seventh day.
Overtime often enters the payroll/IGSS base depending on how it is reported. Confirm with HR or your accountant and use the IGSS calculator for estimates.
Usually no. The incentive bonus is separate and should not automatically inflate the ordinary hourly rate used for overtime.
Yes. Overtime is voluntary under the law, except in emergencies or force majeure. Refusing under normal conditions is not, by itself, grounds for dismissal.