What is double time pay?
Double-time pay is a form of overtime. Employees who work more than 40 hours per week are eligible for time and a half, which is 1.5 times their normal hourly rate. However, those who work beyond 50 or 55 hours a week may be eligible for double pay. This depends on several factors, including federal and state laws and your company’s policy on who is considered exempt and nonexempt.
Exempt and nonexempt employees
To understand how double time works, you first need to know the difference between exempt and nonexempt employees.
Exempt employees are ineligible for double time pay. They are those who made more than $684 per week and are salaried, such as certain computer professionals, executives and administrators. These positions have more competitive pay scales, and employees are predominantly skilled labor that’s intellectual or managerial.
While many people work more than 40 or 50 hours a week, not all of them are eligible for overtime or double time pay. According to the Department of Labor’s Fair Labor Standards Act, there’s no mandate for double time payment, but the rules for those who are eligible for overtime include employees who:
- Earn at least federal minimum wage
- Are paid less than $684 per week
- Are classified as blue-collar workers but may not necessarily include agricultural workers
- Are first responders, law enforcement officers and similar employees
These are considered nonexempt, meaning that they are eligible for overtime pay. With tipped employees, such as waitstaff, the federal minimum wage is $2.13 per hour, and on average, they have to make at least $30 per month in tips. If their hourly wage doesn’t meet the federal minimum wage, employers need to use a tip credit to calculate overtime. They may be able to get double time, depending on what state they live in.
States with double time allowances
As of 2020, there are two states that acknowledge double pay rates for certain employees.
Washington state law mandates overtime from most employees working more than 40 hours in a week. When it comes to double rates, the law says that individuals working on certain public works projects are the only ones eligible. It’s basically up to employers and unions to provide more generous pay rate provisions for overtime work.
California law is more explicit. It requires that eligible employees working more than 12 hours during any workday or working more than eight hours for the seventh consecutive workday are entitled to double pay, regardless of whether the work is authorized or not.
How to calculate double time
Calculating double pay is a simple task. For example, a federal employee who earns $15 per hour works eight hours for four days plus another eight hours during a federal holiday; here’s the calculation:
$15 × (4 × 8 hours) Regular pay for 4 days
+
$30 × 8 hours Double pay for the holiday
Total pay: $720
Under California rules, the calculations are a little different.
For an employee earning $15 an hour who worked a total of 62 hours during a week, the calculation would be:
40 hours × $15 Regular pay for the full 40 hours
+
12 hours × ($15 × 1.5) Time and a half overtime rate for the next 12 hours
+
10 hours × $30 Double rate for the 10 hours above those 52 hours
Total pay: $1,170
Double Time FAQs
What’s the difference between overtime and double time?
Overtime is usually 1.5 times the regular hourly rate, and it usually kicks in when an employee works more than 40 hours per week. Double time happens after overtime is surpassed. Anywhere between 10 and 15 hours over those 40 hours incurs twice the hourly rate.
Why do some companies pay double time?
Some companies want to thank their employees for their extra work during the week, especially if they worked on a federal holiday. In other cases, some states mandate that companies pay employees double time after a certain number of hours worked, regardless of the company size.
Are employers required to pay double time?
Employers are required to pay overtime but not necessarily double time. The threshold for double rate depends on the state and whether the employer has a collective bargaining agreement to which it must adhere.
