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Alabama overtime rules

Alabama has no overtime or minimum wage law of its own. Federal law applies: time and a half after 40 hours in a workweek, and cities and counties are barred from setting anything higher.

Verified against the US Department of Labor.

Your week

Decimal (46.5) or hours and minutes (46:30).

Attendance, production, safety bonuses and shift differentials count. Gifts and reimbursements do not.

Good to know in AlabamaNo state minimum wage or overtime law. FLSA governs: 1.5x after 40 hours.

What you are owed

Regular rate of payBase rate plus bonus, per hour
$25.26
Straight time40.00 hrs at the regular rate
$1,010.43
Overtime6.00 hrs at 1.5×
$227.35
Double timeNone this week
$0.00
Total gross$1,237.78
Your overtime rate is higher than your hourly rate$9.78 more Your regular rate of pay is $25.26, so your overtime rate is $37.89, not $33.00. Paying overtime at $33.00 would leave you $9.78 short this week.

The rule in Alabama

In Alabama, hours over 40 in a workweek are paid at 1.5 times your regular rate. There is no general daily limit, so a 12-hour day inside a 36-hour week earns no overtime.

The US Department of Labor's state table adds: “No state minimum wage or overtime law. FLSA governs: 1.5x after 40 hours.”

What counts toward your regular rate

Overtime is 1.5 times your regular rate of pay: everything you earned for the week at straight time, divided by every hour you worked.

Counts

  • Your hourly pay for every hour worked, at each rate you worked
  • Non-discretionary bonuses — attendance, production, safety, or any bonus promised in advance
  • Commissions
  • Shift differentials for nights, weekends or hazardous work

Does not count

  • Discretionary bonuses and gifts, where both the fact and the amount were up to the employer
  • Expense reimbursements
  • Pay for time not worked: vacation, holidays, sick days

A worked example

Alabama, 46 hours with a $150 production bonus.Your overtime is not 1.5 × $22. The bonus is spread across all 46 hours first, lifting your regular rate to $25.26, which makes your overtime rate $37.89 instead of $33.00. Paying overtime at $33.00 would leave you $9.78 short for the week.

Common mistakes employers make in Alabama

  • Assuming Alabama overtime is still free of state income tax. That exemption ended on 30 June 2025. For 2026 through 2028 only the premium part of overtime — the extra half in time and a half — is deductible, capped at $1,000 a year.
  • Waiting for a local minimum wage to arrive. Alabama law voids any city or county rule that requires an employer to provide a wage, leave or scheduling benefit state or federal law does not already require.
  • Expecting the state to investigate unpaid overtime. Alabama's labor department says the state has no wage and hour laws and routes the complaint to the US Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division.

Other Alabama pay rules worth knowing

  • Final paycheck if fired: Alabama has no final paycheck statute, so the default applies: your next regularly scheduled payday. The date depends on your pay schedule, not on when you were let go.
  • Unused PTO: No state requirement, and no state agency to enforce one. A written policy or contract promising a payout is still enforceable as a contract in court.
  • Late final pay: There is no state penalty for a late final paycheck. Federal FLSA remedies still cover unpaid minimum wage and overtime.

Alabama final paycheck law and deadline calculator →

Alabama overtime: common questions

Does my employer have to pay overtime if they didn't approve it?

Yes. Time your employer knew you were working, or allowed you to work, counts as hours worked, whether or not anyone approved it in advance. An employer can discipline you for breaking an overtime policy, but it still has to pay overtime for those hours — in Alabama as everywhere else under federal law.

Does my bonus change my overtime rate?

Yes, if the bonus is non-discretionary — promised for attendance, production, safety or hitting a target. It is added to your straight-time pay and divided by all the hours you worked, and your overtime is 1.5 times that higher rate. Discretionary gifts, expense reimbursements and paid time off are left out.

Does Alabama have its own overtime law?

No. Alabama has no state overtime provision, so the federal Fair Labor Standards Act sets the rule: time and a half after 40 hours in a workweek, with no daily limit. The federal law covers most employers — any business with $500,000 or more in annual sales, plus hospitals, schools and government agencies.

What is a workweek, and can my employer change it?

A workweek is a fixed, recurring block of seven consecutive 24-hour days, and it can start on any day and at any hour. Overtime is counted per workweek, never averaged across two, even when you are paid every two weeks. Your employer can change the start day, but only permanently and not to avoid paying overtime.

If you think you were underpaid

  1. Keep your own record of the hours you worked — the time card calculator totals them and exports a CSV — plus photos of the posted schedule and messages about shifts.
  2. Ask your employer in writing to correct the pay. Email beats a conversation because it creates a dated record.
  3. File a wage claim — Alabama has no state wage-claim agency. Unpaid minimum wage or overtime goes to the US Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (1-866-487-9243); other unpaid wages are a contract claim in court. It is free, and you do not need a lawyer.
  4. Federal overtime claims must generally be brought within 2 years of the underpayment, or 3 years if the violation was willful.

Spotted something wrong? Report an error.

Other states that also follow the 40-hour weekly rule with nothing added: Arizona, Delaware and District of Columbia.

Work across a state line? Florida overtime rules and Georgia overtime rules.