In this series, we will explore some of the ways states vary from one another in their employment laws.

The Fair Labor Standards Act, the federal law that mandates overtime, requires that non-exempt employees be paid 1.5 times their hourly rate for all time worked beyond 40 hours in a workweek. That standard is so well-known that many employers believe it is the overtime standard everywhere. However, employers should be careful, because some states set different standards for overtime eligibility and pay.

Two states have laws more generous than the federal standard. California non-exempt employees must be paid time-and-a-half for work in excess of eight hours in a day as well as in excess of 40 hours in a week. Moreover, if such an employee works more than 12 hours in a day or more than eight hours on a seventh consecutive day of work, that employee is entitled to double their hourly rate for those hours. Similarly, Colorado non-exempt employees must be paid time-and-a-half for working in excess of 12 consecutive hours, for time beyond 12 hours in a day, and for time beyond 40 hours in a week.

In contrast, Kansas’ overtime law can be less generous to some employees than federal law. If a Kansas employer earns less than $500,000 in annual revenue and is not involved in interstate commerce, then it only has to pay non-exempt employees time-and-a-half when they work more than 46 hours in a workweek. Similarly, in Minnesota, employers that are not involved in interstate commerce and do not earn $500,000 in annual revenue only have to pay overtime after 48 hours in a workweek. Kansas and Minnesota employers that are involved in interstate commerce or that earn $500,000 or more in revenue in a year must follow the federal standard.