Punch ClockHow overtime is worked out
Overtime pay is your hourly rate times the overtime multiplier, for every hour over the limit. At $22 an hour and time and a half, each overtime hour pays $33.00.
Under the US Fair Labor Standards Act, most hourly employees must be paid at least 1.5 times their regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek. A few states add a daily rule too. California, for example, counts overtime after 8 hours in a day.
When both rules apply, the calculator does what Punch Clock does:
- Hours over the daily limit on each day are overtime.
- The regular hours that are left are added up through the week, and any over the weekly limit become overtime.
That order means no hour is paid as overtime twice.
Example: four 10-hour days and a short Friday
| Weekly rule only | Daily 8 h + weekly 40 h | |
|---|---|---|
| Hours worked | 44.0 | 44.0 |
| Regular hours | 40.0 | 36.0 |
| Overtime hours | 4.0 | 8.0 |
| Pay at $22, 1.5× | $1,012.00 | $1,056.00 |
Monday to Thursday are 10 hours each and Friday is 4. With a daily rule, each long day has 2 hours of overtime, 8 in all, and the 36 regular hours never reach the weekly limit.
What the calculator leaves out
It uses one overtime multiplier, like the app, so it doesn't split time and a half from double time (California's 2× after 12 hours in a day, for example). It also doesn't handle seventh-day rules, bonuses that change your regular rate, or tax. It's a way to check your own numbers, not legal or payroll advice. Your state's labor department and your contract have the final word.
Breaks and rounding change the hours first
Many employers take an unpaid meal break off long shifts and round punch times to the nearest 6 or 15 minutes. Both happen before overtime is counted. In Punch Clock Pro, you set them once: for example a 30-minute unpaid break on shifts of 6 hours or more, and rounding to 15 minutes, and every total follows those rules.
Let the app keep count
Doing this by hand every week is where mistakes creep in. Punch Clock records your punches, applies your overtime, break and rounding rules (Pro) as you work, and shows the running total on the clock and the Lock Screen. When a week goes over 40 hours, you see it before payday. The free app tracks your hours and live earnings at your hourly rate; overtime, breaks, rounding, pay periods and per-job rates are part of Pro ($4.99 a month, $29.99 a year with a 7-day free trial, or $49.99 once).
Free on iPhone, iPad and Mac.