California Overtime Tracking Made Easy
The fastest, easiest way to track California overtime right from your phone
– built by construction companies for construction companies.
What are California’s overtime rules?
California state overtime law now mandates that employers pay qualified employees 1.5 times their standard pay rate after working over eight hours in a day or 40 hours in a week. If employees work seven days in a row, they would make 1.5 times their standard pay for the first eight hours of their shift, as well. All of this is on top of the existing FLSA enforced by the federal government. These changes come after the Department of Labor made their own changes to overtime rules back in 2016.
If employees work more than 12 hours in a day, employers must pay them two times their standard pay rate. The same double rate applies for all hours worked beyond the normal eight hour shift on the seventh consecutive day of work.
A number of exemptions exist, so be sure to check the state’s Department of Industrial Relations website and with your legal counsel to make sure everything is up to date.
How do I calculate overtime pay in California?
California overtime is based on the employee’s standard rate of pay.
1.5x the hourly rate for work done over eight hours in a workday or 40 hours a week
1.5x the hourly rate for the first eight hours on the seventh consecutive workday
2x the hourly rate for work done over 12 hours in a workday
2x the hourly rate for work done over eight hours on the seventh consecutive workday
Vacation and sick time cannot count toward overtime in a workweek. Discretionary bonuses (like a holiday bonus) cannot count toward overtime. However, nondiscretionary bonuses based upon product quality and hours worked do count toward overtime calculations.
For example, if you have employees working five, 8-hour shifts, needed a little extra to get a job done on Friday, it would look like this:
Mon. | Tue. | Wed. | Thu. | Fri. | Sat. | Sun. | TOTAL | |
Hours Worked | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 42 |
Regular Pay Rate | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 40 |
1.5x OT Pay Rate | 2 | 2 | ||||||
2x OT Pay Rate |
In another example, you had a busy week, requiring employees to work one 14 hour shift, two 10 hour shifts, and a half day on Saturday. During the 14 hour shift, employees would make 1.5x their regular pay rate for work beyond eight hours. Then, they’d make the 2x OT pay rate for work beyond 12 hours.
Finally, something came up Sunday and you needed employees to work a 10 hour shift. For the first, eight hours, they would be paid the 1.5x OT pay rate. After the initial eight, the cost rises to the 2x OT pay rate for the final two hours of the shift.
Mon. | Tue. | Wed. | Thu. | Fri. | Sat. | Sun. | TOTAL | |
Hours Worked | 8 | 14 | 8 | 10 | 8 | 4 | 10 | 62 |
Regular Pay Rate | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 40 | ||
1.5x OT Pay Rate | 4 | 2 | 4 | 8 | 18 | |||
2x OT Pay Rate | 2 | 2 | 4 |
Who is eligible for California overtime pay?
Employees over the age of 16 with authorization to leave school for work
Employees over the age of 18
Employees not working in executive, professional, or administrative roles
Who is exempt from California overtime pay?
Administrative employees: A person whose job includes office or non-manual labor using specialized skills or training with minimal or general supervision. This person must earn more than twice the state’s minimum wage.
Professional employees: A person whose work is in areas like law, architecture, engineering, accounting, or art. Like administrative employees, they must earn more than twice the state’s minimum wage.
Executives: A person who runs or manages the company (or a subdivison/department) and supervises more than two employees. They have the authority to hire, promote, demote, and fire employees and, like professional and administrative employees, must earn twice the state’s minimum wage.
To get all the information you might need about exemptions, visit California’s Department of Industrial Relations website and get professional advice.
What is considered a workday and workweek in California?
Workday: A consecutive 24-hour period beginning at the same time each calendar day. The definition of a workday in your company can be changed, but only if the change is intended to be permanent and not to avoid overtime pay.
Workweek: Any consecutive, seven day period starting with the same calendar day each week. Like the workday, a workweek can be changed, but only if the change is intended to be permanent and not to avoid overtime pay.
SEE WHAT OUR CONSTRUCTION CUSTOMERS HAVE TO SAY ABOUT
THE BUSYBUSY TIME CLOCK AND EQUIPMENT TRACKING APPS
Brad, Sun Painters, Inc.
“My employees love busybusy. They didn’t keep great {overtime} records before, and we felt like they were guessing half the time on payday. Now, I’m happy and they’re happy!”
Mark, VIP Painting
“Since I’ve started using BusyBusy, I’ve been able to have real, up to the minute visibility of so much vital information related to labor budgets {and overtime} that I am actually able to make necessary timely adjustments to help me be profitable. Love this app!”
Anwanur, Allen Construction
“busybusy has helped us ensure the safety of our crews by knowing what site they are on at all times and allowed us to better see what people are spending their {overtime} on so we can better anticipate needs for future projects.”
Cover Your Bases and
Avoid Costly Legal Headaches
busybusy can make tracking and calculating overtime as simple as opening our app and exporting to your payroll software.
How do I track California overtime for my employees?
Keeping track of all the new regulations on paper could be a nightmare. busybusy has you covered with built-in features specifically designed to help California contractors stay on top of the 2020 California breaks and overtime law.
Eliminate paper timecards and streamline your payroll
Reclaim those wasted hours gathering up paper or emailed timecards and entering them in to the system with the busybusy Mobile Time Tracking app. Verified data can be exported straight from busybusy in to Quickbooks or a number of other payroll software suites.
Get real-time data to lower your job cost
Real-time data is the lifeblood of good decision making when it comes to staying on budget. The busybusy Mobile Time Tracking app allows you to see which employees might be getting close to hitting overtime for the day or week and which project they’re currently working on, keeping you a step ahead to ensure all overtime is approved and part of the plan.
Remove the human error from payroll processes
With the push of a button on their mobile device, your employees can clock in and out, go to break, or move to a different job. Employees can receive location-based alerts to remind them to clock in or out as soon as they arrive or leave work. Supervisors can even batch any of these actions, completing tasks for the entire crew all at once.
Track employee time and location on the job
The busybusy Mobile Time Tracking App features fully-transparent GPS-based tracking so you know where your employees are working and when. No cell service or WiFi on the job? No problem! The app records the location and time stamps throughout the day, uploading them as soon as a connection can be found again.
Increase team connectivity & communication
Get everyone on the same page by setting employee expectations to ensure work on the site matches the planned budget. busybusy allows your crews to upload photos, notes, change orders, and other media to keep you and your supervisors up to date on what’s happening out on the job site.