Q: In California can I have a employee work 12 hours per day for 3 days i.e. hours. Do i have to pay over time over 8 hour

A: Yes you do have to pay overtime. In California you have to pay overtime any time your employee works more than 8 hours in a workday, or more than 40 hours in a workweek. If you work an employee 12 hours in the same workday, you will owe that employee 4 hours of time-and-a-half overtime pay.

Note, a workday is a designated 24 hour period, usually midnight to midnight, although you can set a different workday for your business. Overtime is not calculated by looking at number of hours in a shift, but number of hours in a workday. If a shift falls partially in one workday, and partially in another, you look at how many hours are worked in the workday, also taking into consideration other hours put in during the same workday.

Good luck to you.

A: Not only do you have to pay OT after 8 hours, the employee is entitled to receive a second meal period and 3 rest period breaks during his 12 hours, or you will be paying an additional hour of pay for a missed meal period and an additional hour of pay for a missed rest period, for each day. Should you terminate the employee before paying all past due wages (the additional hours are wages) you could be looking at continuing pay for up to 30 days. Thanks for asking about how to do it correctly before you get into trouble. Suggest you consult with a local employment attorney for specifics about what you plan to do and what you have done.

A: Unless there is an applicable exemption, all employees are entitled to overtime after either 8 hours per day or 40 hours per week. Thus, you would be owe the employee 4 hours of overtime per day that they work 12 hours. Note: The default day starts at midnight, so if an employee starts work at 4 p.m., the hours worked after midnight should apply to the next day. Thus, if the employee worked a Monday, Wednesday, and Friday schedule, you may be able to avoid payment of overtime.