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THE OVERTIME GUIDE

Lineman overtime, hour by hour.

Lineman overtime usually comes from two places at once. Federal law sets a weekly floor, and your agreement or employer policy adds daily overtime, double time and premiums on top. To check it, you need to know which rule turned each hour into a premium hour.

An educational guide for U.S. lineworkers. It is not legal, tax, payroll or employment advice, and it does not decide what your agreement or employer owes you. Every dollar figure is a fictional example. Updated ; sources checked .

On this page.

01 / The federal floor: over 40 in a workweek.

For covered, nonexempt employees, the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requires overtime pay of at least 1.5 times the regular rate for hours worked over 40 in a workweek. Three details matter for linework:

  • The workweek is fixed. It is a recurring 168-hour period that can start on any day and hour. It is not your pay period, and it doesn't have to be Sunday to Saturday.
  • Each week stands alone. Hours can't be averaged across two weeks, so a 50-hour storm week next to a 30-hour week still has 10 overtime hours.
  • High pay doesn't make you exempt. The Department of Labor says blue-collar workers in construction and similar trades are not exempt under the white-collar rules, however much they earn.

Federal law does not require daily overtime, double time, or premium pay for weekends and holidays. Employees of a state or local government utility can have different arrangements, including compensatory time off; see the department's public-agency fact sheet.

02 / Base rate is not always the regular rate.

Your base rate is the straight-time rate on your rate sheet. The federal regular rate is the week's includable pay divided by the hours actually worked. They are the same only in a simple week.

  • Included: most pay for the work, such as nondiscretionary bonuses (for example, a promised safety or production bonus) and many shift differentials.
  • Excluded: expense reimbursements, true overtime premiums, true premiums for weekend and holiday work, discretionary bonuses, and pay for time not worked, such as vacation.
  • Two jobs in one week: if you worked at two straight-time rates, for example as journeyman and as foreman, the regular rate is normally the weighted average of both.

Daily overtime premiums paid under an agreement can usually be credited toward the federal weekly overtime. The extra part of a callout guarantee for hours you did not work generally cannot. The rules have conditions; the Department of Labor's regular-rate overview is the place to start.

03 / Daily overtime and double time come from your rules.

Much of what linemen call overtime is written into an agreement or pay policy. Before choosing a multiplier, find the clause and its effective date, and check what triggers it:

  • Hours beyond a daily threshold, such as 8 or 10 in a workday.
  • A second, higher tier, such as double time after a further threshold.
  • Work outside the regular schedule, before the start time or after quitting time.
  • Particular days: a sixth or seventh day, Sundays, or listed holidays.
  • How the workday is defined. It may not run midnight to midnight.

State law can add its own rules. California, for example, generally requires 1.5× after 8 hours in a workday and 2× after 12, with seventh-day rules, subject to exceptions that include certain collective bargaining agreements. See California's overtime FAQ and Labor Code §514. Don't apply one state's rules to work in another.

04 / How overtime appears on a paystub.

Payroll prints overtime in one of two ways. Both can be correct, and mixing them up is an easy way to get a hand check wrong.

Full-rate overtime line
Regular 40.00 h × $58.40 = $2,336.00, then Overtime 8.00 h × $87.60 = $700.80. Total $3,036.80.
Straight time plus a premium-only line
Regular 48.00 h × $58.40 = $2,803.20, then OT premium 8.00 h × $29.20 = $233.60. Total $3,036.80.

Fictional figures. If your paystub uses the second style, don't add 8 hours at $87.60 on top of 48 straight-time hours. See how to read a paystub for earnings codes.

05 / A fictional overtime week.

Illustrative example only. Assume a confirmed rule of 1.5× after 8 hours in a workday and 2× after 12, a $58.40 base rate, and no bonuses or other pay. Monday to Thursday are 10-hour days; Friday is a 14-hour storm day.

Monday–Thursday: 8 h straight + 2 h at 1.5× each day
32 h straight, 8 h overtime
Friday: 8 h straight + 4 h at 1.5× + 2 h at 2×
8 h straight, 4 h overtime, 2 h double time
Straight time: 40 h × $58.40
$2,336.00
Overtime: 12 h × $87.60
$1,051.20
Double time: 2 h × $116.80
$233.60
Expected gross wages for the week
$3,620.80

The week has 54 hours, so 14 are over 40. All 14 already earn at least 1.5× under the daily rule, and no other pay raises the regular rate, so the federal weekly check adds nothing here. Spread the same 54 hours over six 9-hour days instead, and the daily rule produces only 6 overtime hours. For a covered, nonexempt employee, the weekly rule then matters for the other 8 hours over 40. A nondiscretionary bonus would also change the answer. Try your own week in the pay calculator.

06 / Check your overtime in six steps.

  1. Write down your workweek's start day and time, and your workday definition.
  2. From your log, total the hours for each day and each workweek. Keep overnight work on its actual dates.
  3. Apply your confirmed daily rules first: straight time, then each overtime tier.
  4. Check each workweek against 40 hours, and note any bonus or differential that changes the regular rate.
  5. Match each tier to its paystub line, minding full-rate versus premium-only presentation.
  6. Note any hour you can't place. Ask payroll about that line specifically instead of the total.

How LinePaycheck handles overtime.

You set the rules you work under: daily overtime tiers (for example, 1.5× after 8 hours and 2× after 12), an outside-schedule premium, Sunday and holiday or date premiums. Each shift's ledger line shows its formula, such as "2 h × $50.00 × 1.5". A separate weekly overtime review checks a complete workweek against 40 hours and shows the regular rate it used. Anything you haven't configured is listed as not checked, rather than assumed to be zero. See every supported rule.

Common questions.

Do linemen get overtime?

Generally, yes. Under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act, covered, nonexempt employees get at least 1.5 times their regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek. The Department of Labor says manual, blue-collar workers in construction and similar trades are not exempt under the white-collar rules no matter how highly paid they are. Public-agency employment and other special cases have their own rules.

Is lineman overtime calculated daily or weekly?

Federal overtime is weekly: hours over 40 in a fixed workweek. Daily overtime, such as time and a half after 8 or 10 hours in a day, comes from your agreement, an employer policy, or a state law such as California's. Many lineworkers have both, and they need to be checked separately.

When do linemen get double time?

Federal law does not require double time. It comes from your agreement or employer policy, for example after a set number of hours in a day, outside the regular schedule, or on certain days, or from a state law such as California's rule for hours over 12 in a workday. Read the exact clause and its effective date.

Can overtime be averaged across a two-week pay period?

Not under federal law. Each workweek stands alone, so 30 hours one week and 50 the next means 10 overtime hours in the second week, even if the pay period is biweekly.

Why is my overtime rate more than 1.5 times my base rate?

Federal overtime is based on the regular rate, which includes most pay for the week, such as nondiscretionary bonuses and some differentials, divided by hours worked. When those payments exist, the overtime rate can be higher than 1.5 times the base rate. An agreement can also set a higher multiplier.

Does federal law require overtime for weekends and holidays?

No. Federal law only requires overtime for hours over 40 in the workweek. Weekend, holiday and Sunday premiums come from agreements and employer policies.

Sources.