Overtime Pay: Are you Eligible?

Overtime Pay: Are You Eligible?

If you’re wondering whether you’re eligible for overtime pay, the short answer is: it depends on your salary and your actual job duties, not your job title. Under federal law, most hourly employees and many salaried employees earning below $684 per week ($35,568 per year) are entitled to overtime pay at 1.5x their regular rate for hours worked beyond 40 in a week. Employees who earn more and perform specific executive, administrative, or professional duties are typically exempt.

That single sentence covers the basics, but the details — the exact salary threshold, the duties test, and how your state’s laws might change the answer — matter a lot in practice. Here’s the full picture.

What Is Overtime Pay?

Overtime pay is extra compensation for working more than the standard full-time hours. Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), it kicks in after you work 40 hours in a workweek and is paid at 1.5 times your regular hourly rate — commonly called “time and a half.” If you make $20/hour, your overtime rate is $30/hour. A workweek is a fixed, recurring period of seven consecutive 24-hour periods — your employer can’t average your hours across two weeks to avoid paying overtime (working 30 hours one week and 50 the next still means 10 overtime hours owed for the second week).

Are You Eligible for Overtime Pay?

Your eligibility comes down to whether you’re classified as non-exempt or exempt under the FLSA — and this classification depends on your actual duties and pay structure, not what your offer letter calls you.

Non-Exempt Employees

You’re eligible for overtime pay. Most hourly workers fall into this category, along with many salaried workers who earn below the current federal salary threshold. Examples: retail associates, warehouse workers, customer service reps, most administrative assistants.

Exempt Employees

You generally don’t qualify for federal overtime. Exempt workers are usually salaried and perform specific executive, administrative, or professional duties. Examples: department managers who supervise staff and make real hiring/firing input, licensed professionals like accountants and engineers, and administrative employees who exercise genuine independent judgment on significant matters.

Worked example: Maria is a salaried “assistant manager” at a retail store, earning $45,000/year — well above the federal salary threshold. Her employer classifies her as exempt. But in practice, Maria spends 90% of her time doing the same tasks as hourly sales associates (stocking shelves, running the register, greeting customers) and has no real authority over hiring, firing, or scheduling. Because her actual duties don’t meet the executive or administrative exemption test — regardless of her title or salary — she may be misclassified and entitled to back overtime pay for hours she worked over 40 per week. This is one of the most common overtime violations, and it usually isn’t caught until an employee questions their classification directly.

The Federal Salary Threshold (Updated for 2026)

As of 2026, the federal minimum salary threshold for the “white-collar” (executive, administrative, professional) exemption is $684 per week, or $35,568 per year.

This figure has a complicated recent history worth knowing, because outdated information about it is common online. In 2024, the Department of Labor issued a rule raising the threshold significantly higher, to roughly $1,128 per week. That rule was challenged in court and struck down by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. In May 2026, the DOL formally revised its regulations to restore the original, pre-2024 threshold of $684/week. If you see a higher number cited elsewhere — including in older articles — it likely reflects that vacated 2024 rule and is no longer the governing standard.

There’s also a separate, higher threshold for highly compensated employees: $107,432 per year in total annual compensation, combined with a simplified version of the duties test.

It’s Not Just About Salary — the Duties Test Matters Too

Earning above the salary threshold does not automatically make you exempt. To be legally exempt, an employer must show you pass three separate tests:

1. Salary basis test — you’re paid a fixed, predetermined salary, not hourly, that doesn’t fluctuate based on hours or quality of work.
2. Salary level test — that salary meets or exceeds $684/week ($35,568/year), or the applicable higher state threshold.
3. Duties test — your actual day-to-day responsibilities meet the legal definition of one of the exempt categories.

The duties test breaks down into a few specific categories:

• Executive exemption — your primary duty is managing the business or a department, you regularly direct the work of at least two other full-time employees, and you have real input into hiring, firing, or promotion decisions.
• Administrative exemption — your primary duty is office or non-manual work directly related to management or business operations, and you regularly exercise independent judgment on significant matters (not just following a checklist).
• Professional exemption — your work requires advanced knowledge in a field of science or learning, typically acquired through prolonged specialized education (think: licensed engineers, accountants, registered nurses in certain roles, attorneys).

Job titles don’t decide this — actual job duties do, every time. An employer can’t make you “exempt” just by calling you a manager and paying you a salary if your real day-to-day work doesn’t meet one of these tests. For a deeper breakdown of this distinction, see our guide to Exempt vs. Non-Exempt Employees.

State Overtime Laws Compared

Federal law sets the floor, but several states go further — some require daily overtime (not just weekly), and some set their own, higher exempt salary thresholds.

Six states raised their own exempt salary thresholds above the federal floor as of January 1, 2026. If you’re unsure whether your state is one of them, check your state labor department directly — thresholds and rules are updated frequently and can vary even by region within a state. If your state’s rule is more generous than federal law, your employer must follow the state rule, not the federal one.

What If You Think You’re Owed Overtime?

1. Start with your employer. Payroll errors happen, and if you were entitled to overtime, you may be owed back pay without needing to escalate further.
2. Document everything. Keep your own record of hours worked — dates, times, tasks — independent of your employer’s system, especially if you suspect you’re being underpaid or misclassified.
3. Compare your actual duties to the exemption tests above, not just your job title or salary.
4. Check with your state labor office. Many states have agencies that help workers resolve overtime disputes directly.
5. File a complaint with the U.S. Department of Labor if the issue isn’t resolved directly with your employer.

If you’re specifically being told to work overtime without pay rather than just wondering whether you qualify, see Can Employers Force Overtime? for the mandatory-overtime side of this question, or Can You Legally Refuse Unpaid Overtime? if you’re weighing whether to say no.

FAQs

Related Articles

• Exempt vs. Non-Exempt Employees
• Can Employers Force Overtime?
• Can You Legally Refuse Unpaid Overtime?
• Can Your Employer Make You Work Off the Clock?

Disclaimer

This article is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Overtime laws vary by state and are subject to change. Consult a qualified employment attorney or your state labor department for guidance specific to your situation. Please read our Terms and Conditions.

Last updated: September 2026