Am I Owed Overtime Pay?

Overtime is one of the most commonly shorted rights at work — often because of a job title that does not match the actual job. The key question is not what you are called, but whether you are “non-exempt” under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

What the Law Says

Under the FLSA, non-exempt employees must be paid 1.5× their regular rate for every hour worked beyond 40 in a workweek. Your “regular rate” is not just your base hourly pay — it also includes things like non-discretionary bonuses and shift differentials.

You are exempt (not owed overtime) only if you meet all of a strict test, generally:

1. You are paid on a salary basis;
2. You earn at least the federal threshold ($684 per week); and
3. Your actual duties are primarily executive, administrative, professional, outside sales, or certain computer work.

Crucially, a job title does not decide it. Calling someone a “manager” does not make them exempt if their real duties do not meet the test.

An Everyday Example

You are a salaried “assistant manager,” but you spend most of your week doing the same hourly work as the crew — stocking, running a register, cleaning. If your duties are not truly managerial, you may actually be non-exempt and owed overtime for those 50-hour weeks, no matter what your title says.

Some States Require More

The FLSA is the federal floor. Several states require more — for example, daily overtime after 8 hours in a day, or a higher salary threshold for exemption. Where state law is more protective, the employer must follow it. Check your state’s overtime rules alongside the federal ones.

What This Means for You

If you are non-exempt and working over 40 hours, you are likely owed time-and-a-half — and misclassification by title is common. You can file a confidential complaint with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division, generally within two years (three for willful violations), to recover unpaid overtime.