How to Calculate FLSA Overtime and Premium Pay in 5 Procedures | EasyClocking by WorkEasy Software

How to Determine Which Hours Count as FLSA Hours Worked

intermediate · 45 minutes per pay period

This assessment procedure establishes the compensable time base before any overtime formula is applied. Executed by a payroll or HR administrator during timesheet review, it produces a validated hours-worked total that excludes non-compensable breaks and includes qualifying travel time.

1. Pull the Raw Time-Capture Record
Prerequisites
- Confirmed FLSA non-exempt classification for each employee in the pay period
- Raw timesheet data or time-capture export for the full workweek
- Documented workweek start and end day on file
Export the full workweek punch-in and punch-out log for each non-exempt employee, confirming the workweek boundary matches the FLSA-designated start day. The FLSA requires a fixed, recurring seven-day workweek; any deviation invalidates downstream overtime math.
If you use EasyClocking by WorkEasy Software, generate the export from the time-capture module for the specific workweek window. Confirm the following before proceeding:
- The export covers exactly seven consecutive 24-hour periods.
- The start day matches the workweek definition your company has on file (e.g., Sunday at 12:00 a.m.).
- All employees in the export carry a confirmed non-exempt FLSA classification.
Do not use scheduled hours or estimated totals. Every figure in this export must reflect actual recorded punches. If any punch is missing, flag it now; resolving it later inflates correction cycles downstream.
Expected outcome: A complete, workweek-aligned punch log for every non-exempt employee, with no missing or unverified punches remaining in the dataset.
2. Identify All Meal-Break Deductions
Prerequisites
- Company meal-break and rest-break policy specifying duration and whether breaks are duty-free
Remove bona fide meal periods of 30 minutes or more where the employee was completely relieved of duties. Under the FLSA, these periods are not hours worked and must be excluded from the compensable total.
Review each meal-break entry against your company's documented meal-break policy. A meal break qualifies for exclusion only when all of the following are true:
- The break lasted 30 minutes or longer.
- The employee was fully relieved of all work duties for the entire break.
- The employee was free to leave the work area (or the policy explicitly permits on-site breaks with no duties).
If an employee was called back to work during a 30-minute meal break, the entire break reverts to compensable time. Document every exclusion with the rule applied. This documentation becomes part of your FLSA audit trail.
Expected outcome: All meal breaks of 30 minutes or more that meet the duty-free standard are flagged for exclusion, with each exclusion documented by rule.
3. Retain All Rest Breaks of 20 Minutes or Fewer
Keep all rest breaks of 20 minutes or fewer in the hours-worked total. The FLSA treats short breaks as compensable time, and deducting them understates hours worked, creating liability in a Department of Labor audit.
Scan the timesheet for any break coded as non-compensable that lasts 20 minutes or fewer. Reclassify it as compensable and add the minutes back to the running total. EasyClocking by WorkEasy Software flags rest breaks under 20 minutes as compensable automatically, preventing the most common hours-worked undercount.
Common error to avoid: some systems default all breaks to non-compensable. If your time-capture configuration auto-deducts breaks, verify the deduction threshold is set to 30 minutes, not 15 or 20. A 15-minute auto-deduction applied to a 10-minute rest break removes compensable time from the record.
Expected outcome: Every rest break of 20 minutes or fewer is classified as compensable and included in the hours-worked total.
4. Evaluate Travel Time for Compensability
Apply FLSA travel-time rules to determine which travel segments count as hours worked. The rules differ by travel type:
- Normal commute (home to work): Not compensable. Exclude from hours worked.
- Travel between job sites during the workday: Compensable. Include in hours worked. This is one of the most common audit findings in construction and field-service payroll.
- Overnight travel during normal work hours on non-work days: Compensable for the hours that fall within the employee's regular working hours, even if no work is performed during transit.
- Travel that is all in a day's work (e.g., driving from the shop to a remote job site and back): Compensable for the travel time beyond the normal commute distance.
For each employee with travel entries, classify the travel segment, apply the correct rule and add or exclude the time accordingly. Document the rule applied to each segment.
Expected outcome: All travel time segments are classified as compensable or non-compensable with the applicable FLSA rule documented for each.
5. Flag Any Off-the-Clock Work
Review manager notes, badge records, system login timestamps and any other evidence of work performed outside punched hours. The FLSA requires employers to compensate for all hours they "suffer or permit" an employee to work, even if the employee did not formally clock in.
Check for the following indicators:
- Emails, messages or system logins before the first punch or after the last punch of the shift.
- Manager notes indicating an employee arrived early to set up equipment or stayed late to clean a work area.
- Security badge entries that precede or follow the time-capture punch by a meaningful margin.
When you confirm off-the-clock work occurred, add the verified time to the employee's compensable total. Record the evidence source, the duration added and the manager who verified the work. Do not estimate; use the best available evidence to determine actual time.
Expected outcome: All confirmed off-the-clock work is added to the compensable hours total, with evidence and verification documented.
6. Sum All Compensable Time
Add regular punched hours, retained rest breaks, qualifying travel time and confirmed off-the-clock work to produce the validated weekly hours-worked figure for each employee.
Use the following structure to organize the total:
1. Regular punched hours (after meal-break exclusions).
2. Plus rest breaks retained (20 minutes or fewer).
3. Plus compensable travel time.
4. Plus verified off-the-clock work.
5. Equals validated weekly hours worked.
This figure is the input for Procedure 2 (weekly overtime threshold). If the figure seems unusually high or low compared to the employee's typical week, investigate before locking it. Catching an anomaly here prevents a cascade of errors through every downstream calculation.
Expected outcome: A single validated weekly hours-worked total per employee, constructed from all compensable time categories.
7. Document the Determination
Record which time segments were included or excluded and the rule applied to each decision. This documentation is the audit trail required for FLSA recordkeeping.
Your hours-worked determination log should contain, at minimum:
- Employee name and employee ID.
- Workweek start date and end date.
- Total punched hours before adjustments.
- Each adjustment (meal-break exclusion, rest-break retention, travel-time inclusion, off-the-clock addition) with the FLSA rule or company policy cited.
- Final validated hours-worked total.
- Name of the administrator who completed the determination and the date.
Store this log alongside the raw timesheet export. The platform from EasyClocking by WorkEasy Software generates an inclusion and exclusion log automatically, but verify it captures every manual adjustment you made during this procedure. Under FLSA, employers must retain these records for a minimum of three years.
Expected outcome: A completed hours-worked determination log per employee, with an itemized inclusion and exclusion record ready for audit review.

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How to Compute Weekly Overtime Hours Under FLSA

intermediate · 30 minutes per pay period

This execution procedure applies the 40-hour weekly threshold to a validated hours-worked total to isolate the overtime hours subject to premium pay. It produces a straight-time hour count and an overtime hour count for each non-exempt employee.

1. Confirm the Workweek Total
Prerequisites
- Validated weekly hours-worked total from Procedure 1 (How to Determine Which Hours Count as FLSA Hours Worked)
- Confirmed FLSA non-exempt status for each employee
Use the validated hours-worked figure from Procedure 1. Do not substitute scheduled hours, estimated hours or rounded figures. The accuracy of every downstream calculation depends on this number.
Open your hours-worked determination log and confirm the following for each employee:
- The total reflects all compensable time categories (punched hours, retained rest breaks, qualifying travel, verified off-the-clock work).
- All meal-break exclusions were applied correctly.
- The determination log is signed off by the responsible administrator.
If any employee's hours-worked figure is still flagged as unresolved, stop. Return to Procedure 1 and resolve the flag before continuing. Advancing with an unvalidated total is the single most common source of overtime calculation errors.
Expected outcome: Each employee's validated weekly hours-worked total is confirmed and ready for the 40-hour threshold test.
2. Apply the 40-Hour FLSA Threshold
Prerequisites
- Employee's regular rate of pay (hourly rate or calculated regular rate for salaried non-exempt)
Subtract 40 from the validated total hours worked for each employee. Any positive remainder is overtime hours subject to the 1.5x premium under the FLSA.
The arithmetic is straightforward, but two rules are non-negotiable:
- Workweek basis only. FLSA overtime is calculated per workweek, not per pay period. If your pay period spans two workweeks (bi-weekly or semi-monthly), calculate overtime for each workweek independently. Averaging hours across two weeks is prohibited.
- No offsets. If an employee worked 45 hours in Week 1 and 35 hours in Week 2, the employee earned 5 overtime hours in Week 1. You cannot offset Week 2's shortfall against Week 1's excess.
EasyClocking by WorkEasy Software applies the 40-hour weekly threshold and applicable state daily thresholds simultaneously, producing a single overtime-hours figure without manual layering.
Expected outcome: Each employee's hours above 40 are identified as FLSA overtime hours; employees at or below 40 hours show zero overtime.
3. Check for Applicable State Daily Overtime Rules
Prerequisites
- State overtime rules reviewed for each employee's work location
If any employee works in a state with daily overtime thresholds, compute daily overtime hours separately and add them to the weekly overtime pool. Avoid double-counting hours already captured in the weekly calculation.
The most common state daily overtime rules include:
- California: Hours over 8 in a single workday are overtime at 1.5x. Hours over 12 in a single workday are double time at 2x. All hours on the seventh consecutive day of work in a workweek are overtime at 1.5x for the first 8 hours and 2x after 8 hours.
- Colorado: Hours over 12 in a single workday, or 12 consecutive hours regardless of workday boundaries, trigger overtime.
For each applicable state rule, calculate daily overtime hours day by day across the workweek. Then compare the daily overtime total to the weekly overtime total. The employee is entitled to whichever method produces more overtime hours. Do not simply add daily and weekly overtime together; that would double-count overlapping hours.
Expected outcome: Daily overtime hours (if applicable) are computed and reconciled against the weekly overtime total, with no double-counted hours.
4. Separate Straight-Time Hours
Record the first 40 hours of validated time (or fewer, if total hours worked is under 40) as straight-time hours paid at the regular rate.
Label this figure clearly in your working file. It will be used in Procedure 3 to calculate straight-time wages. For employees whose total hours fall below 40, their entire validated total is straight-time and no overtime calculation is required for the FLSA weekly rule. However, if a state daily overtime rule applies, those daily overtime hours still count even if the weekly total is under 40.
Expected outcome: A labeled straight-time hour count per employee, ready for rate calculation in Procedure 3.
5. Record Overtime Hours
Document the hours above 40 (plus any state daily overtime hours not already counted in the weekly figure) as the overtime hours to which the premium multiplier will be applied in Procedure 3.
For each employee, your record should include:
- Total weekly overtime hours (hours over 40).
- State daily overtime hours (if applicable and not already captured in the weekly count).
- Combined overtime hours (the figure that advances to Procedure 3).
If an employee has hours that qualify for double time under state law (e.g., California hours over 12 in a day), separate those into a distinct bucket now. They will be handled in Procedure 4, not Procedure 3.
Expected outcome: A documented overtime hour count per employee, with any double-time-eligible hours separated into a distinct bucket for Procedure 4.
6. Verify Against Prior Pay Period
Cross-check each employee's overtime hour count against the prior period's figure for the same employee. This comparison is not a formula; it is an anomaly check. Look for:
- Employees who typically have zero overtime but show significant overtime this period.
- Employees whose overtime hours doubled or halved without a known scheduling change.
- Patterns across a crew or department that suggest a timesheet configuration error rather than actual hours variation.
Investigate any anomaly before advancing to Procedure 3. A five-minute check here can prevent hours of post-payroll corrections. If the anomaly is explained by a legitimate schedule change, document the reason and proceed.
Expected outcome: All anomalies between current and prior period overtime figures are investigated, explained and documented.

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How to Calculate Time-and-a-Half Pay

intermediate · 30 minutes per pay period

This execution procedure applies the FLSA 1.5x overtime premium to validated overtime hours to produce the correct gross overtime wage. It produces a dollar-amount overtime wage line ready for payroll entry.

1. Establish the Regular Rate of Pay
Prerequisites
- Confirmed overtime hours figure from Procedure 2
- Employee's regular rate of pay established (hourly rate or calculated regular rate for salaried non-exempt)
- Any non-discretionary bonuses or shift differentials for the workweek identified
For hourly employees, the regular rate is the stated hourly rate. For salaried non-exempt employees, divide the weekly salary by total hours worked in the workweek to get the regular rate.
The distinction matters. A salaried non-exempt employee who earns $800 per week and worked 50 hours has a regular rate of $16.00 per hour ($800 ÷ 50), not $20.00 per hour ($800 ÷ 40). Using 40 as the divisor instead of actual hours worked is a common error that overstates the regular rate and produces incorrect overtime wages.
Confirm the regular rate before proceeding. This figure is the foundation of every premium calculation that follows.
Expected outcome: A confirmed regular rate of pay per employee, calculated using actual hours worked for salaried non-exempt employees.
2. Add Non-Discretionary Bonus Amounts to the Regular Rate Base
Divide any non-discretionary bonus earned in the workweek by total hours worked and add the result to the hourly regular rate. Omitting this step is one of the DOL's top audit findings.
A non-discretionary bonus is any bonus announced in advance and tied to criteria the employee can work toward (production targets, attendance records, shift completion). A discretionary bonus (e.g., a surprise holiday gift with no pre-announced criteria) does not need to be included.
If an employee earned a $100 non-discretionary production bonus and worked 45 hours, the bonus allocation is $100 ÷ 45 = $2.22 per hour. Add $2.22 to the base regular rate. The adjusted regular rate is now the figure you carry forward to the overtime multiplier step.
EasyClocking by WorkEasy Software calculates the regular rate automatically, including non-discretionary bonus allocation, so the 1.5x multiplier is always applied to the correct base, not just the stated hourly rate.
Expected outcome: The regular rate reflects all non-discretionary bonus and shift differential allocations for the workweek.
3. Calculate the Overtime Premium Rate
Multiply the adjusted regular rate (including bonus allocation) by 1.5 to produce the time-and-a-half rate.
Formula: Overtime rate = Regular rate × 1.5
Record this rate for each employee. If an employee's regular rate changed mid-workweek (e.g., they worked two jobs at different rates), you must calculate a weighted average regular rate across all hours worked before applying the 1.5x multiplier. The weighted average is calculated as: total straight-time earnings for the workweek ÷ total hours worked = weighted regular rate.
Do not round the overtime rate mid-calculation. Carry the full decimal value through to the wage multiplication step to avoid compounding rounding errors.
Expected outcome: A documented overtime premium rate (regular rate × 1.5) per employee, with weighted averaging applied where multiple pay rates exist.
4. Multiply the Overtime Rate by Overtime Hours
Multiply the time-and-a-half rate by the number of overtime hours from Procedure 2 to produce the overtime wage amount.
Formula: Overtime wages = Overtime rate × Overtime hours
Use decimal hours throughout. If an employee worked 6 hours and 30 minutes of overtime, express that as 6.5 hours, not 6:30. Hours-and-minutes notation in payroll calculations is a persistent source of rounding errors.
Record the resulting dollar amount as the overtime wage line for the employee. This figure, combined with straight-time wages, will produce total gross wages in the next steps.
Expected outcome: A dollar-amount overtime wage figure per employee, calculated from the verified overtime rate and verified overtime hours.
5. Calculate Straight-Time Wages Separately
Multiply the regular rate by straight-time hours (from Procedure 2) to produce the base wage amount.
Formula: Straight-time wages = Regular rate × Straight-time hours
For salaried non-exempt employees, straight-time wages equal the weekly salary. The overtime premium is the additional amount owed above the salary. Some payroll systems handle this by paying the "half-time" premium (0.5 × regular rate × overtime hours) on top of the salary rather than recalculating 1.5x from scratch. Both methods produce the same total gross pay if applied correctly. Confirm which method your payroll system uses and stay consistent.
Expected outcome: A dollar-amount straight-time wage figure per employee, consistent with the method used in the payroll system.
6. Sum Straight-Time and Overtime Wages
Add the straight-time wage amount and the overtime wage amount to produce the employee's total gross wages for the workweek.
Formula: Total gross wages = Straight-time wages + Overtime wages
Compare this total against the employee's typical gross pay. If the result deviates significantly and the overtime hours were modest, recheck the regular rate calculation and bonus allocation. A common error is double-counting the bonus: once in the base salary and again in the bonus allocation step. The bonus should appear in the regular rate calculation only, not as a separate wage line.
Expected outcome: A total gross wage figure per employee for the workweek, combining straight-time and overtime wage amounts.
7. Record the Calculation Inputs and Outputs
Document the regular rate, bonus allocation (if any), overtime hours, overtime rate, overtime wages and total gross wages for the payroll audit file. This record must be retainable for a minimum of three years under FLSA recordkeeping rules.
Your documentation should include:
- Employee name and ID.
- Workweek dates.
- Base hourly rate or weekly salary.
- Non-discretionary bonus amount and per-hour allocation.
- Adjusted regular rate.
- Straight-time hours and wages.
- Overtime hours and wages (at 1.5x).
- Total gross wages.
If any hours qualify for double time or double-time-and-a-half, carry those hours forward to Procedure 4 before finalizing this record. The 1.5x calculation documented here covers only the standard FLSA overtime tier.
Expected outcome: A complete calculation trail per employee showing regular rate derivation, bonus inclusion, overtime wages and total gross wages, archived for audit readiness.

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How to Calculate Double Time and Double-Time-and-a-Half Pay

advanced · 20 minutes per pay period

This execution procedure applies 2x and 2.5x premium multipliers to hours that qualify for elevated overtime rates under state law, a collective bargaining agreement (CBA) or company policy. It produces a premium wage line for each elevated-rate hour.

1. Separate Hour Buckets by Rate Tier
Prerequisites
- Confirmed regular rate of pay from Procedure 3 (including bonus allocation)
- Hours qualifying for double time identified and separated from 1.5x overtime hours
- Hours qualifying for double-time-and-a-half identified separately
- Applicable policy or statute documented (state law, CBA article number or company policy reference)
Divide the employee's workweek hours into labeled groups: straight-time hours, 1.5x overtime hours (from Procedure 3), double-time hours and double-time-and-a-half hours. No hour may appear in more than one bucket.
Common triggers for elevated-rate buckets:
- Double time (2x): California hours over 12 in a single workday; California 7th consecutive day hours over 8; CBA provisions specifying 2x for specific shifts or holidays.
- Double-time-and-a-half (2.5x): CBA or company holiday policies that layer a 0.5x premium on top of double time for holiday work.
If an employee has hours in multiple elevated-rate buckets in the same workweek, separate each bucket clearly. Label every hour with its rate tier and the rule that triggered it. This labeling is what makes the calculation auditable.
Expected outcome: All hours are assigned to exactly one rate-tier bucket, with no overlaps and each assignment linked to a triggering rule.
2. Calculate the Double-Time Rate
Multiply the adjusted regular rate (from Procedure 3) by 2.0 to produce the double-time rate.
Formula: Double-time rate = Regular rate × 2.0
Use the same adjusted regular rate that includes non-discretionary bonus allocation. Do not revert to the base hourly rate for elevated-tier calculations. The regular rate is the regular rate for all FLSA and state premium calculations within the same workweek.
Record this rate alongside the triggering rule (e.g., "California Labor Code Section 510, hours over 12 in a workday").
Expected outcome: A documented double-time rate per employee, derived from the same adjusted regular rate used in Procedure 3.
3. Calculate the Double-Time-and-a-Half Rate
Multiply the adjusted regular rate by 2.5 to produce the double-time-and-a-half rate.
Formula: Double-time-and-a-half rate = Regular rate × 2.5
This rate is not required by federal FLSA. It is triggered only by a CBA provision, state law or company holiday policy. Confirm the triggering rule is documented and current before applying this multiplier. If the CBA was renegotiated or the company policy was updated since the last pay period, verify the new terms before calculating.
EasyClocking by WorkEasy Software supports configurable rate tiers mapped to triggering rules by state, shift type or CBA provision, eliminating manual bucket separation.
Expected outcome: A documented double-time-and-a-half rate per employee, with the triggering CBA, statute or policy reference on file.
4. Compute Each Premium Wage Amount
Multiply each elevated rate by its corresponding hour count to produce a wage amount per bucket.
Formulas:
- Double-time wages = Double-time rate × Double-time hours
- Double-time-and-a-half wages = Double-time-and-a-half rate × Double-time-and-a-half hours
Use decimal hours throughout. If an employee worked 4 hours and 15 minutes at double time, express that as 4.25 hours. Carry the full decimal through to the multiplication to avoid rounding errors that compound across pay periods.
Record each wage amount as a separate line item. Your payroll system will need these as distinct pay-code entries, not a blended single line.
Expected outcome: A dollar-amount wage figure for each elevated-rate bucket, recorded as separate line items.
5. Sum All Wage Buckets
Add straight-time wages (from Procedure 3), 1.5x overtime wages (from Procedure 3), double-time wages and double-time-and-a-half wages to produce total gross wages for the workweek.
Formula: Total gross wages = Straight-time wages + 1.5x OT wages + 2x wages + 2.5x wages
This is the employee's complete gross pay for the workweek. Compare it against prior periods and against the overtime hours breakdown from Procedure 2 as a sanity check. If the gross pay is significantly higher than expected, verify that no hours were double-bucketed across rate tiers.
Expected outcome: A total gross wage figure with itemized wage lines for each premium tier.
6. Document the Triggering Rule for Each Elevated Rate
Record the statute, CBA provision or company policy that triggered each elevated rate alongside the calculation inputs for the audit file. This step is distinct from general recordkeeping because elevated rates carry a higher audit risk; the burden of proof is on the employer to show why a specific rate was applied (or not applied).
Your documentation should include:
- The specific rule (e.g., "California Labor Code Section 510", "CBA Article 12.3", "Company Holiday Policy Rev. 2024-01").
- The hours that triggered the rule.
- The rate applied.
- The resulting wage amount.
Store this alongside the Procedure 3 calculation trail. Together, the Procedure 3 and Procedure 4 records form the complete premium-pay audit package for the workweek.
Expected outcome: A documented triggering-rule record for every elevated-rate hour, archived alongside the Procedure 3 calculation trail for a complete premium-pay audit package.

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How to Hand Off Validated Overtime Figures to Payroll Without Manual Cleanup

intermediate · 60 minutes per pay period

This setup procedure transfers confirmed gross wage calculations from the time-and-attendance system into the payroll system with full audit traceability and no manual re-entry. It produces a payroll-ready import file and a reconciliation log.

1. Run the Overtime Exception Report
Prerequisites
- Completed gross wage calculations for all non-exempt employees (outputs of Procedures 3 and 4)
- Time-and-attendance system and payroll system integration configured or export template prepared
- Payroll cutoff deadline and submission window confirmed for the current pay period
Generate a report from the time-capture system listing every employee with overtime hours, flagged anomalies or unresolved punch exceptions. Do not initiate any export or payroll transfer until this report is reviewed.
The exception report should surface:
- Missing punches (clock-in without clock-out or vice versa).
- Unapproved timesheets.
- Classification mismatches (e.g., an employee coded as exempt who logged overtime hours).
- Unusual hour counts that were not investigated during Procedure 2.
Print or save this report. It becomes the first artifact in your payroll audit package for the period.
Expected outcome: A complete exception report listing all unresolved items, printed or saved for reference before export.
2. Resolve All Open Exceptions
Prerequisites
- Exception report from the time-capture system reviewed
Correct every missing punch, unapproved timesheet and classification mismatch identified in the exception report. Do not export until the exception queue is empty.
For each exception:
1. Identify the root cause (missed punch, system error, manager oversight).
2. Apply the correction (add the missing punch, approve the timesheet, correct the classification).
3. Document who made the correction, when and why.
Resist the temptation to export with open exceptions to meet a payroll deadline. Submitting with unresolved flags is the primary source of post-payroll correction cycles, which create retroactive pay adjustments, employee complaints and compliance risk.
Expected outcome: The exception queue is empty; every flagged item is resolved, corrected and documented.
3. Lock the Workweek Timesheet
Apply a timesheet lock in the time-capture system to prevent retroactive edits after the payroll export is initiated. Once locked, changes require a formal unlock approval and an audit log entry.
The lock serves two purposes:
- It preserves the integrity of the figures you are about to export.
- It creates a clean boundary in the audit trail between "pre-payroll" edits (corrections) and "post-payroll" edits (adjustments that may require retro pay).
In EasyClocking by WorkEasy Software, the timesheet lock is applied at the workweek level. Confirm the lock is active for every workweek covered by the current pay period before proceeding to the export step.
Expected outcome: All workweek timesheets for the pay period are locked, and the audit trail reflects the lock timestamp.
4. Export or Map Wage Data to Payroll
Use the system integration or export template to transfer straight-time hours, overtime hours and each premium wage line (1.5x, 2x, 2.5x) as separate pay-code line items in the payroll system.
Key mapping requirements:
- Each rate tier must map to a distinct pay code in the payroll system (e.g., REG for straight time, OT15 for 1.5x, DT for 2x, DTH for 2.5x).
- Dollar amounts and hours must both transfer if the payroll system requires them; confirm the field mapping before the first live export.
- Employee IDs in the time-capture system must match employee IDs in the payroll system exactly. A single ID mismatch routes wages to the wrong employee.
EasyClocking by WorkEasy Software exports straight-time, 1.5x, 2x and 2.5x wage lines as separate pay codes directly into the payroll system, eliminating manual re-entry and producing the FLSA audit package automatically.
Expected outcome: All wage data is transferred to the payroll system as itemized pay-code line items, with no manual re-keying.
5. Validate the Import in Payroll
Open the payroll register and confirm that each employee's imported hours and wage amounts match the validated figures from Procedures 3 and 4. Check totals for the entire workforce, not just a spot-check of individual employees.
Validation steps:
1. Compare total overtime hours in payroll against total overtime hours in the time-capture system.
2. Compare total straight-time wages, overtime wages and premium wages by tier.
3. Verify that every employee who appeared in the time-capture export also appears in the payroll register (no dropped records).
4. Verify that no employee who was not in the export appeared in the register (no phantom records).
If any discrepancy is found, stop the payroll run, identify the root cause (field mapping error, ID mismatch, dropped record) and re-export after correction.
Expected outcome: Payroll register totals match time-capture system totals across all rate tiers, with no dropped or phantom records.
6. Run a Gross-Pay Reconciliation
Compare total gross wages in the payroll system against the sum of all wage-bucket calculations from Procedures 3 and 4 to confirm no figures were dropped or duplicated in the transfer.
This is a global check, not a per-employee check. Calculate: Sum of all straight-time wages + Sum of all 1.5x wages + Sum of all 2x wages + Sum of all 2.5x wages = Expected total gross payroll. Compare this figure to the payroll system's reported total gross payroll.
If the figures do not match within your acceptable rounding tolerance (typically a few cents across the entire workforce due to decimal rounding), investigate before submitting. Even small discrepancies can compound over pay periods and trigger audit questions.
Expected outcome: Total gross payroll in the payroll system matches the calculated total from the time-capture system within acceptable rounding tolerance.
7. Generate and Archive the Audit Package
Produce a payroll audit file containing the following artifacts:
- Validated timesheet (locked version).
- Hours-worked determination log from Procedure 1.
- Overtime hour counts from Procedure 2.
- Rate calculations and wage figures from Procedures 3 and 4.
- Exception report and resolution log.
- Payroll import confirmation (file receipt or integration log).
- Gross-pay reconciliation output.
Under FLSA recordkeeping requirements, employers must retain payroll records (including hours worked, wages earned, overtime compensation and the basis on which wages were paid) for a minimum of three years. The system from EasyClocking by WorkEasy Software generates this package automatically, but verify it includes every manual adjustment you made during Procedures 1 through 4.
Expected outcome: A complete, archived audit package covering every stage from hours-worked determination through payroll import, retained per FLSA's three-year minimum.
8. Submit Payroll and Confirm Transmission
Submit the payroll run within the cutoff window. After submission, retain the submission confirmation timestamp in the audit package.
Post-submission, verify:
- The payroll provider or system acknowledged receipt of the submission.
- No error or rejection notifications were returned.
- The confirmation timestamp falls within the published cutoff window for the pay period.
If the payroll system returns an error, do not resubmit blindly. Identify whether the error is a data-quality issue (which requires a return to the export step) or a transmission issue (which requires a retry). Document the error and resolution in the audit package regardless of cause.
Expected outcome: Payroll is submitted within the cutoff window, a confirmation timestamp is archived, and no error or rejection notifications remain unresolved.

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How to Determine Which Hours Count as FLSA Hours Worked

1. Pull the Raw Time-Capture Record

2. Identify All Meal-Break Deductions

3. Retain All Rest Breaks of 20 Minutes or Fewer

4. Evaluate Travel Time for Compensability

5. Flag Any Off-the-Clock Work

6. Sum All Compensable Time

7. Document the Determination

How to Compute Weekly Overtime Hours Under FLSA

1. Confirm the Workweek Total

2. Apply the 40-Hour FLSA Threshold

3. Check for Applicable State Daily Overtime Rules

4. Separate Straight-Time Hours

5. Record Overtime Hours

6. Verify Against Prior Pay Period

How to Calculate Time-and-a-Half Pay

1. Establish the Regular Rate of Pay

2. Add Non-Discretionary Bonus Amounts to the Regular Rate Base

3. Calculate the Overtime Premium Rate

4. Multiply the Overtime Rate by Overtime Hours

5. Calculate Straight-Time Wages Separately

6. Sum Straight-Time and Overtime Wages

7. Record the Calculation Inputs and Outputs

How to Calculate Double Time and Double-Time-and-a-Half Pay

1. Separate Hour Buckets by Rate Tier

2. Calculate the Double-Time Rate

3. Calculate the Double-Time-and-a-Half Rate

4. Compute Each Premium Wage Amount

5. Sum All Wage Buckets

6. Document the Triggering Rule for Each Elevated Rate

How to Hand Off Validated Overtime Figures to Payroll Without Manual Cleanup

1. Run the Overtime Exception Report

2. Resolve All Open Exceptions

3. Lock the Workweek Timesheet

4. Export or Map Wage Data to Payroll

5. Validate the Import in Payroll

6. Run a Gross-Pay Reconciliation

7. Generate and Archive the Audit Package

8. Submit Payroll and Confirm Transmission

How These Procedures Connect

Next steps