Must I pay overtime on hours an employee is paid for time off such as vacations, holidays and sick time?

Q&As

• Can we assign vacation time to employees who do not sign up to take vacation?
• What can be done to avoid cashing out unused vacation on termination?​
• How do I calculate overtime?
• Can a California employer buy back vacation or paid time off (PTO) hours at less than full value from California-based employees?
• Can we change our vacation policies as a result of the employees not using their time during COVID-19?
• What choices do we have to calculate vacation pay for our commission only, outside sales staff?
• Can we choose not to limit the use of paid sick leave during an employee’s first 90 days of employment?
• What should I do when Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, and New Year's Eve and New Year's Day fall on Saturday and Sunday?
• My company has a quarterly bonus program that requires hourly employees to meet performance standards to achieve a nondiscretionary bonus. Must I treat the bonus as part of the regular rate of pay and possible payment of overtime?
• Does an employee continue to accrue vacation time while on pregnancy disability leave?
• May we deduct from the exempt employee's salary when they have no paid time off accrued and takes off a partial day for the employee's own illness or for vacation?
• Is a deduction from an exempt employee’s vacation bank for a partial day’s absence limited to increments of four or more hours?
• Can we have different vacation policies for different worksites and for different groups in the same office?
• An employee wants to agree to a varied flexible schedule with no overtime, unless the employee works more than 40 hours a week. Is such an agreement protection from overtime claims?
• Can an employee bring a legal action for unused vacation time if he is still working?
• If my employee earns more than $100,000 per year, are they exempt from overtime?
• Can an employee use makeup time if he or she misses a day of work and submits a written request to use overtime previously worked in that workweek to pay for the missed day?
• Can my employees accrue compensatory time off (comp time) instead of being paid overtime?
• If our employees have accumulated large vacation balances can we offer our employees a one-time chance to cash in vacation at a reduced rate, specifically at one-half of their current salary or wage and still be in compliance with California law?
• Will all employees earn the full amount of paid sick leave (five days or 40 hours) each year no matter how many or how few hours they work?
• Must I allow an employee to use sick time when their children are sick?
• If an employee is terminated before completing a 90-day probationary period, do we have to pay accrued vacation?
• Can an employee makeup time missed in one day by working extra another day without overtime?
• What are employer options for holiday pay and holiday work?
• How does an employer’s closing, sale or bankruptcy affect final pay for accrued and unused vacation?
• When an existing employee changes jobs or classifications within a company, can we impose the paid sick leave waiting period?
• Does a holiday count as a day worked when calculating overtime pay?
• We simply list the holidays the company observes; how robust should our holiday policy be?
• How do I calculate the overtime owed when an employee is paid a bonus?
• Can an intrastate truck driver be exempt from California overtime but still be subject to federal overtime?
• Are intrastate truck drivers exempt from overtime?
• How does kin care relate to the mandatory sick leave law?
• Is it legal to pay our inside sales staff a weekly salary that pays for 40 hours of straight time and eight hours of overtime?
• What legal requirements should I consider in planning staffing over the holiday season?
• Do I have to grant an employee time off to care for a neighbor?
• If a nonexempt employee is required to work on a company holiday, what rate should the employee earn for working that day?
• Can I let an employee who is out of vacation time use sick leave to take time off for a trip?
• Do outside sales staff members receive vacation pay when they leave?
• How is overtime calculated for an employee paid two different hourly rates?
• Do California overtime laws apply to employees working from home in other states?
• What are the overtime requirements for an employee who returns to work in less than eight hours after working an eight-hour shift?
• Does an ownership change require a vacation payout?
• Do I have to pay an employee who is leaving for unused sick and/or vacation time?
• Do I pay my employees based on overtime worked in one day, or in one week?
• How do I pay an employee who works on a holiday?
• Do I have to pay exempt employees the day after a paid holiday?
• Must I pay an exempt employee who worked during his vacation?
• Will we have to pay overtime to employees who want to work a second shift performing completely different duties?
• Do I have to pay overtime to an employee who worked the extra hours without permission?
• How do I pay for sick leave under California’s paid sick leave law when an employee has more than one rate of pay?
• Can we have a policy requiring employees to work the day before and after a holiday to receive pay for not working on the holiday?
• Which poster explains overtime pay?
• Can I provide more paid sick leave to some employees and not others?
• What is a PTO policy?
• We have a PTO policy. Do we have to track mandatory paid sick time separately from other reasons for time off?
• Are public agency employees subject to overtime rules?
• If I put an employee on salary, are they exempt from overtime?
• Are we required by law to provide holiday pay to our employees?
• Am I required to limit the use of an employee’s paid sick leave under California's paid sick leave law?
• Am I required to offer paid holidays to my employees?
• Am I required to provide paid vacations for employees?
• Am I required to provide sick leave for employees?
• Can I require employees to use vacation or forfeit it?
• Can I require that employees take vacation time only after they've earned it?
• Can I require an employee to use accrued paid vacation time before taking unpaid time off?
• Is there a rule about capping vacation at one-and-one-half times an employee’s accrual rate?
• What rules apply to personal days or floating holidays?
• What are the time limits and criteria applicable to a vacation earnings cap?
• Does vacation pay accrue during a layoff period?
• Is the value of gift cards (given as a holiday gift) part of my employees’ compensation that needs to be considered when calculating overtime?
• Is varying employee benefits based on job classification a form of discrimination?
• Can I wait for a period of time before an employee starts earning vacation?