Calculation & Legal Disclaimer

1. Federal FLSA Baseline vs. State Law Variations

Calculations on TimeCard Web reflect the general federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) standard: 40 hours per 7-day workweek for covered nonexempt employees with overtime at 1.5× the base hourly rate.

Many U.S. states and municipalities enforce stricter labor protections. For example:

• California: Requires overtime pay after 8 hours of work in a single workday and double time after 12 hours, plus mandatory meal and rest break penalty premiums.
• Alaska & Nevada: Mandate daily overtime for eligible workers who exceed 8 hours worked in a 24-hour period.
• Colorado & Kentucky: Enforce specific daily overtime or consecutive-day overtime rules.

TimeCard Web currently models the standard weekly federal threshold. It does not automatically calculate daily overtime or state-specific break penalty pay.

2. Exempt vs. Nonexempt Status

Under federal law (29 U.S.C. § 213(a)(1) and 29 CFR Part 541), employees classified as bona fide executive, administrative, professional, computer, or outside sales workers are exempt from federal overtime pay. Our calculator assumes nonexempt status.

3. Regular Rate of Pay Nuances

In formal payroll processing, an employee's "regular rate of pay" under the FLSA includes all remuneration for employment, such as non-discretionary bonuses, shift differentials, and commissions, divided by total hours worked in that week. If you receive bonuses or differential pay, your legal overtime rate may differ from a simple 1.5× base wage calculation.

4. Workweek Boundary & Overnight Shift Limitations

Under FLSA regulations (29 CFR § 778.105), a workweek is defined as a fixed and regularly recurring period of 168 consecutive hours (seven consecutive 24-hour periods). It may begin on any day of the week and at any hour of the day established by the employer.

In our weekly timesheet calculator, an overnight shift that starts on Day 7 (such as Sunday at 10:00 PM) and finishes on the following morning (Monday at 6:00 AM) is mathematically attributed to the day on which the shift began (Day 7). However, under formal payroll rules:

• If your employer's established 168-hour workweek cuts off at midnight on Sunday, the 2 hours worked before midnight belong to Workweek 1, while the 6 hours worked after midnight legally belong to Workweek 2.
• Alternatively, some employers establish a workday policy attributing the entire shift to either the day on which it begins or the day on which it ends.

If your payroll system splits hours at the midnight workweek boundary, you should enter the hours worked before midnight on your Day 7 timesheet row, and enter the hours worked after midnight on Day 1 of your subsequent week's timesheet.

5. Gross vs. Net Pay

Estimated earnings reflect gross wages before mandatory statutory payroll taxes (Federal FICA, Social Security, Medicare, federal and state income tax withholding) and voluntary deductions (health insurance, retirement contributions).