Hospital or Nursing Home Job? How the 8-and-80 Overtime Rule Works

The Usual Rule: 40 Hours in a Workweek

For most employees, the Fair Labor Standards Act requires overtime at one and one-half times the regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek, as explained in DOL Fact Sheet #23. Each week stands alone, a point covered in our post on employers who average hours over two weeks.

What 8-and-80 Means

Section 7(j) of the FLSA, found in 29 U.S.C. 207, lets an employer engaged in the operation of a hospital or an establishment that cares for the sick, the aged or the mentally ill who reside on the premises use a 14-day period instead of a workweek. Under that system, overtime must be paid for hours over 8 in any workday and for hours over 80 in the 14-day period. If an employee would get more overtime from one count than the other, the employee must be paid the greater amount. The Department of Labor describes the details in Fact Sheet #54.

The Agreement Requirement

The 14-day period is not automatic. The regulation at 29 CFR 778.601 says the employer and employee must have an agreement or understanding before the work is performed. If there was no agreement, the ordinary 40-hour workweek rule applies. A hospital cannot choose the more favorable method for itself after the fact.

A Short Example

• Daily overtime

  Under a valid 8-and-80 agreement, a 12-hour shift includes 4 hours of overtime even if the total for the 14 days stays under 80 hours.

• Period overtime

  If you work ten 8-hour days in 14 days and then pick up two extra 4-hour shifts, hours over 80 in the period are overtime.

• No double counting

  The same hour cannot be paid as overtime twice, but you get whichever method produces more overtime hours.

Pay Problems To Watch For

• Straight time for 12-hour shifts

  If your facility uses weekly overtime, three 12-hour shifts alone do not trigger overtime, but a fourth does. If it claims 8-and-80, ask whether you signed or agreed to it.

• Bonuses and differentials left out

  Night, weekend and charge pay generally belong in the regular rate. See our guide to <a href="/blogs/bonus-or-shift-differential-left-out-of-overtime-pay-regular-rate-rules" class="text-primary underline">bonuses and shift differentials in overtime pay</a>.

• Multiple locations

  Hours at two sites of one employer are added together, as explained in <a href="/blogs/worked-at-two-locations-for-the-same-employer-overtime-counts-all-your-hours-flsa-rules" class="text-primary underline">our post on two locations</a>.

• Sleeping hours on long shifts

  Some long shifts have rules for sleep time, covered in <a href="/blogs/sleep-time-on-a-24-hour-shift-when-sleeping-hours-count-as-paid-work-flsa-rules" class="text-primary underline">our 24-hour shift guide</a>.

What To Do Now

Ask HR how overtime is calculated and whether there is a written 14-day agreement. Save schedules, timecards and pay stubs for each pay period. The Department of Labor overtime page explains the basics, and you can ask the Wage and Hour Division about a claim through its complaint information page. Claims are subject to deadlines, which we explain in how far back unpaid overtime can be recovered.

Free Case Review

If you work in a hospital, nursing home or similar facility and think your overtime was calculated wrongly, our team can review your pay records at no cost, if you are eligible.