California Laws for Overtime Work on a Holiday
California's labor code has provisions requiring overtime pay in certain circumstances, but does not require overtime pay for employees who work regular hours on a holiday. The only way an employee has a legal right to overtime pay on a holiday is by meeting the overtime requirements that apply based on hours worked per day or week.
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Overtime Provision
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In California, employees must receive 1.5 times their regular wage for working overtime hours, which are hours in excess of 40 per week or eight per day. Employees also must receive overtime pay for the first eight hours on their seventh consecutive day of work in a given week. Employees must receive double their regular wage for hours in excess of 12 per day, as well as for hours in excess of eight on their seventh consecutive day of work.
Holiday Provision
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California's Department of Industrial Relations states that the same laws apply to hours worked on holidays and weekends that apply to hours on any other day. Employers do not owe extra pay to employees who work a holiday, except for the hours they work beyond eight for the day or 40 for the week, or for hours they put in on their seventh day of work in a week. Employees who work overtime on a holiday may receive the same overtime rate--1.5 times their usual rate, or twice their usual rate for hours in excess of 12--as employees who work extra hours on any other day.
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Potential Misconceptions
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If employers choose to offer paid time off on holidays, that time does not figure into calculations of an employee's hours for the purposes of determining weekly overtime pay. For example, working 37 hours and collecting eight hours of holiday pay does not mean the employee receives pay for five hours of overtime. Only hours actually worked make the employee eligible for overtime pay. Employers may require employees to work holidays without offering special compensation rates, such as overtime pay for regular hours and double pay for overtime hours.
Additional Considerations
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Employers may choose to offer special pay rates for regular hours and overtime hours on a holiday, and must follow any policies they have established in this regard. An employer may change a policy, but must alert employees before they perform the work. Employers also might have to offer special rates for working regular hours and overtime on a holiday based on terms in a contract, such as employment agreements or collective bargaining agreements with a union.
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