Pennsylvania Overtime Laws

Overtime laws in Pennsylvania (PA) dictate how much money employers have to pay when their employees work beyond the federally mandated maximum of 40 hours per week. Federal and state labor laws provide rules for how much workers must be compensated for their hourly work and, by extension, their overtime work. 

This guide will lead you through relevant overtime laws in PA, common state wage payments, and overtime exemptions in Pennsylvania.

The amount of overtime to which you are entitled is based on your regular pay rate and the terms of your employment contract, whether you are an hourly or salaried employee. Pennsylvania overtime laws must follow federal law with regard to minimum salary. The Minimum Wage Act requires all employers to provide employees earnings or basic minimum wage at $7.25 per hour for up to 40 hours, after which Pennsylvania overtime laws and federal rules dictate you receive overtime. Paid overtime applies only to your overtime hours worked. 

You must receive compensation for overtime in PA on the next paycheck. If, for example, you get your weekly salary, you should see any overtime hours included in the following paycheck. On your paycheck, you should see:

It's important to distinguish employees from independent contractors, as overtime laws typically don't apply to contractors. A clear independent contractor agreement template can help define roles, payment terms, and protect both parties under Pennsylvania law.

The Federal Fair Labor Standards Act is a federal law which mandates all states, including Pennsylvania, provide compensation for overtime pay in compliance with federal minimums. 

During a given work week, any hours an employee works beyond 40 hours qualifies for overtime pay in PA. The current overtime pay rate is the same as the federal level: 1.5 times a standard rate of pay. While your employer can legally force you to work overtime, they must provide you with compensation to match it. 

Employers are required now by overtime laws in PA to provide overtime compensation as money. They cannot offer employees things like extra days off instead. 

For PA labor law overtime, there are no limits on overtime pay based on the size of the company. All companies, whether they have two employees or 200 employees, must provide compensation for overtime. 

There are PA overtime exemptions to this, but not as many as there were before. 

Previously, there were situations where employees tried to circumvent paying overtime in Pennsylvania. One of those is providing employees with a salary rather than an hourly paycheck. In theory, putting employees on salary can increase the number of hours they work, without requiring the company to pay them for overtime. 

However, the new Pennsylvania double time laws require employers to pay employees overtime even if they are salaried employees. Now, the weekly amount earned on salary (or monthly amount divided by four weeks) is used to calculate the equivalent hourly rate for the salaried employees which is then used to determine overtime pay. 

That said, there are some overtime exemptions including exempt employees. You will know if you are an exempt employee because exemptions are included in work contracts. Some examples of exempt employees include business owners or C-suite executives. 

According to PA overtime laws, If you are owed overtime, but your employer has not paid you, you can file a claim for unpaid overtime. You have three years from the date your overtime was earned to file a claim for compensation. Federal law is only two years, but Pennsylvania state is three.

If your overtime is more than 30 days past due, then your employer owes you an additional 25% on top of the overtime compensation. 

You are able to file a claim under both:

1. Mandatory overtime laws in PA, and
2. The Federal Labor Standards Act

Both claims can be filed concurrently. The federal court can enforce both laws at the federal and state level. However, if you do opt to pursue a claim, you will need to proceed in one of three federal court districts in the state. 

Overall, the rules regulating PA labor law overtime have been made much more aligned with federal law. You are entitled to overtime pay for any hours worked beyond 40, with few exceptions. If you are a salaried employee, your salary is used to determine your relative hourly rate. The hourly rate is then multiplied by 1.5 to produce your overtime figure. If you have unpaid overtime, you can pursue compensation for up to three years at the state and federal level.