FLSA Requirements for Public Safety Employees
This topic provides an overview of FLSA requirements for public safety employees and discusses:
Maximum nonovertime hours under 7K exemption (public safety).
28 day, 212–hour FLSA period example.
14 day, 86–hour FLSA period example.
The FLSA overtime requirements for public safety employees are different from those of other employees, because a specified number of work hours is needed within the FLSA work period before the FLSA rate can be applied to overtime pay. Their work periods vary from seven to 28 days, depending on the work period. Some police officers and fire protection employees have 28-day work periods; some have 14-day work periods. These employees usually receive pay biweekly and have 28-day FLSA pay periods. They can report overtime hours throughout the FLSA period, but FLSA overtime regulations are not invoked until the employee works more than the maximum FLSA hours for the period. After the employee works the maximum FLSA hours for the period, you must pay all overtime over the maximum using the FLSA regular rate.
You must pay overtime to fire protection employees for hours that exceed 212 in a 28-day period. You must pay overtime to law enforcement employees for hours that exceed 171 in a 28-day period. If the work period is fewer than 28 days, the hours are prorated. This enables you to balance work hours over an entire FLSA work period.
For those with work periods of seven to 28 days, the system calculates overtime hours that are reported after an employee's FLSA hours equal the number shown in the following table, published by the Wage and Hour Division, U.S. Department of Labor:
|
Days in Work Period |
Fire Protection |
Law Enforcement |
|---|---|---|
|
28 |
212 |
171 |
|
27 |
204 |
165 |
|
26 |
197 |
159 |
|
25 |
189 |
153 |
|
24 |
182 |
147 |
|
23 |
174 |
141 |
|
22 |
167 |
134 |
|
21 |
159 |
128 |
|
20 |
151 |
122 |
|
19 |
144 |
116 |
|
18 |
136 |
110 |
|
17 |
129 |
104 |
|
16 |
121 |
98 |
|
15 |
114 |
92 |
|
14 |
106 |
86 |
|
13 |
98 |
79 |
|
12 |
91 |
73 |
|
11 |
83 |
67 |
|
10 |
76 |
61 |
|
9 |
68 |
55 |
|
8 |
61 |
49 |
|
7 |
53 |
43 |
Example
A firefighter's work period is 28 consecutive days, and she works 80 hours in each of the first two weeks, 52 hours in week three, and none in week four. Her total work hours of 212 (80 + 80 + 52 + 0) which does not exceed 212 for the 28-day work period.
Therefore, no overtime pay is due.
If the same firefighter has a work period of 14 days, overtime pay is due for 54 hours (160 minus 106 hours, the amount in the table) for the weeks in which she works two consecutive 80 hour weeks.
Days in work period = 14. Overtime pay is due after 106 hours. Therefore, 54 hours of overtime pay is due.
Firefighter Jane has a 28-day work period and earns an annual salary of 24,000 USD for all hours worked. For each FLSA period, Jane receives 1,846.15 USD (= 24,000.00 USD / 13).
During the last FLSA period, Jane worked 224 hours (12 more than the maximum of 212). Her regular rate is 8.24 USD (= 1,846.15 USD / 224). Jane's overtime premium is 49.44 USD (= 12 × 8.24 USD × 0.5).
This police department uses an 86-hour, 14-day work period. Under present city regulations, police officers can receive pay in several earnings codes for hours that exceed 81 in a 14-day period. They can receive:
Mandatory overtime (MOT)
Special event overtime (SOT)
Comp time (CTO)
If the city pays MOT or SOT in the present payment system, this overtime premium for hours up to the FLSA limit of 86 hours can apply as a credit against FLSA liability. For example:
Crediting Overtime Premium Against FLSA Liability
|
Item |
Description |
|---|---|
|
Employee |
Joe |
|
Monthly salary |
2,631.00 USD |
|
Contractual hourly rate |
15.179 USD |
|
Scholastic bonus (biweekly) |
18.47 USD |
|
Special assignment pay |
30.36 USD |
|
FLSA period |
14 day, 86 hours |
For a two-week (14-day) pay period, Joe records the following information:
|
Earnings Code |
Description |
Hours |
Effect on FLSA |
|---|---|---|---|
|
REG |
Regular |
78 |
Hours and amount |
|
MUP |
Move-up |
3 |
Hours and amount |
|
MOT |
Mandatory overtime |
2 |
Hours and amount |
|
SOT |
Special event overtime |
4 |
Hours and amount |
|
CTO |
Comp time |
2 |
None |
|
SCK |
Sick leave |
2 |
None |
|
Total |
|
91 |
|
Because all of the earnings except SCK and CTO are eligible, the total eligible FLSA hours is 87. Because this is one hour more than the police officer's limit of 86 hours for a 14-day period, Joe has one hour of FLSA liability.
Determining the FLSA Regular Rate
To determine the FLSA regular rate, the system calculates: FLSA eligible earnings / FLSA eligible hours.
|
Earnings Code |
Hours |
Rate |
Earnings |
|---|---|---|---|
|
REG |
78 |
15.179 USD |
1,183.96 USD |
|
MUP |
3 |
15.938 USD (= 15.179 USD × 1.05) |
47.81 USD |
|
MOT |
2 |
15.179 USD (straight-time only) |
30.36 USD |
|
SOT |
4 |
15.179 USD (straight-time only) |
60.72 USD |
|
Scholastic bonus |
|
|
18.47 USD |
|
Special assignment pay |
|
|
30.36 USD |
|
Total |
87 |
|
1,371.68 USD |
FLSA regular rate = 1371.68 USD / 87 = 15.766436 USD.
Calculate the Overtime Premium
Calculate the overtime premium under FLSA and under the city's method as follows:
FLSA overtime premium: 1 × 15.766436 USD × 0.5 = 7.88 USD.
City overtime premium: 1 × 15.179 USD × 0.5 = 7.59 USD.
The FLSA premium is greater than the city's premium, so the employee should receive the FLSA rate for the one hour over the 86-hour limit, if the city pays the higher of FLSA or contractual overtime.
Reversing Overtime
If MOT is the main pay group's overtime earnings code (defined in the Pay Group table), then the system reverses the one hour of MOT paid at the contractual rate and pays it at the FLSA rate instead:
|
Earnings Code |
Hours |
Rate |
Earnings |
|---|---|---|---|
|
SCK |
2 |
15.179 USD |
30.36 USD |
|
REG |
78 |
15.179 USD |
1,183.96 USD |
|
MUP |
3 |
15.938 USD (= 15.179 USD × 1.05) |
47.81 USD |
|
MOT at contractual |
2 |
22.7685 USD (= 15.179 USD × 1.5) |
45.54 USD |
|
MOT contractual reversal |
−1 |
7.59 USD (= 15.179 USD × 0.5) |
−22.77 USD (= 15.179 + 7.59) |
|
MOT at FLSA rate |
1 |
7.88 USD (= 15.766 USD × 0.5) |
23.06 USD (= 15.179 + 7.88) |
|
SOT |
4 |
22.7685 USD (= 15.179 USD × 1.5) |
91.07 USD |
|
Scholastic bonus |
|
|
18.47 USD |
|
Special assignment pay |
|
|
30.36 USD |
|
Total wages |
|
|
1,447.86 USD |
Note: The original overtime that you enter on the paysheet does not change during pay calculation. If you must pay part of the overtime at a different rate, then instead of reducing the original overtime hours, the pay calculation generates two new paysheet entries: a reversal for those hours at the original rate, and an adjustment entry for the same number of hours at the new rate. These new entries generated are unavailable for selection, and you cannot modify them. Only you (not the pay calculation) can update the original overtime hours. Therefore, multiple recalculation is possible and the original overtime hours is preserved; adjustments and reversals are generated instead to update overtime at different rates if needed.
If there are multiple overtime earnings (for example, MUP, MOT and SOT), the system reverses the overtime hours in sequence, as follows, until the overtime hours that are eligible at the new FLSA rate are zero:
Process the main overtime earnings code defined in the pay group's table for overtime hours.
If you process multiple jobs from multiple pay groups on a single check, use the primary pay group's table overtime earnings code first. If there is a rate change, process the one with the lowest contractual rate first.
For processing multiple jobs from multiple pay groups on a single check, process overtime defined in the nonprimary pay group's table for overtime hours.
If there are multiple overtime earnings codes, process the one with the lowest contractual rate first in this group.
Process all other overtime hours.
Process the one with the lowest contractual rate first in this group.