Semi-monthly pay periods and weekly overtime
Why overtime is counted by workweek even when pay periods run the 1st to the 15th.
Last reviewed October 30, 2026. This article explains the rules in plain words. It is not legal advice: your company and its counsel decide your policy.
Many companies pay semi-monthly: the 1st to the 15th, and the 16th to the end of the month. Overtime under federal law, and weekly overtime in California, is counted by workweek, not by pay period. The two do not line up.
The workweek#
A workweek is a fixed, recurring period of 168 hours: seven consecutive 24-hour periods. It can start on any day and at any hour, but it is fixed, and hours cannot be averaged across two weeks (29 CFR 778.104 and 778.105).
When a week straddles the 15th#
A semi-monthly period of 15 or 16 days always cuts at least one workweek in two. Overtime for that week is still worked out on the whole week, and paid in the period in which the week ends, or on the next regular payday after the overtime can be computed (29 CFR 778.106).
An example#
The workweek runs Sunday to Saturday. The 15th is a Wednesday. Someone works 10 hours a day Monday to Friday:
- The pay period ending the 15th includes Monday to Wednesday: 30 hours.
- The workweek's 50 hours are complete only on Saturday, so its 10 hours of weekly overtime are paid with the period that holds Saturday.
In California, the daily overtime on each 10-hour day is known on the day itself and can be paid in the period it falls in.
California pay dates#
For semi-monthly periods, California requires wages earned from the 1st to the 15th to be paid by the 26th, and those from the 16th to the end of the month by the 10th of the next month (Labor Code 204).
How Oh! Thyme handles it#
Workweeks and pay periods are kept separately. A timesheet shows a pay period one Sunday-to-Saturday week at a time, and weekly overtime is counted on the whole workweek.
Sources#
- 29 CFR 778.104 to 778.106: ecfr.gov
- California DLSE, paydays: dir.ca.gov