Calculating Overtime Pay at Time-and-a-Half, With a Worked Example
Standard overtime under US federal law pays 1.5 times the regular hourly rate for hours worked beyond 40 in a single work week — at a $20/hour regular rate, overtime pay is $30/hour, so someone working 45 hours in a week earns 40 hours at $20 ($800) plus 5 overtime hours at $30 ($150), for a total of $950.
This is a straightforward calculation once the regular rate and overtime hours are correctly identified, though a few real-world details are worth walking through explicitly.
The worked calculation
Regular pay: 40 hours × $20/hour = $800. Overtime pay: 5 hours × ($20 × 1.5 = $30/hour) = $150. Total weekly pay: $800 + $150 = $950 — notably more than the $900 a flat $20/hour rate for all 45 hours would produce, since the overtime hours are paid at the higher rate.
Why overtime is calculated per work week, not per pay period
Standard overtime rules are based on hours worked within a single work week, not averaged across a longer pay period — working 30 hours one week and 50 hours the next (averaging 40/week) still triggers overtime for the 50-hour week specifically, since overtime doesn't average out across weeks.
What counts toward the 40-hour threshold
Generally, only actual hours worked count toward the 40-hour overtime threshold — paid time off, holidays, and sick leave taken within the same week typically don't count as "worked" hours toward triggering overtime, even though they're paid, though specific employer policies can vary.