Arizona follows the federal overtime rules established by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) rather than having a separate state overtime law.
This means most employees in Arizona are entitled to receive overtime compensation at 1.5 times their regular rate of pay for all hours worked over 40 in a single workweek, unless they fall into an exemption.
If you believe you have worked overtime without proper pay, Stone Rose Law can help you determine if you have a claim and recover what you are owed. Call us today at (480) 535-9003 to learn more about your rights.
Arizona overtime laws are governed by the FLSA. While Arizona sets its own minimum wage (currently $14.70 per hour as of January 1, 2025), the rules for overtime hours, overtime eligibility, and overtime rate of pay come from federal law.
The basic requirements are:
Employers must pay wages promptly and include them in the pay period when the overtime was earned.
Not all employees qualify for overtime compensation. The FLSA distinguishes between non-exempt employees (eligible for overtime pay) and exempt employees (not entitled to overtime pay).
Non-exempt employees generally include:
Exempt employees generally include:
The exemption status depends on job duties, not just job titles, and in many cases requires meeting a minimum salary threshold set by federal law.
The overtime rate is 1.5 times the employee’s regular rate of pay. For hourly employees, the regular rate is simply their hourly wage. For salaried employees who are non-exempt, the salary must be converted to an hourly equivalent based on a 40-hour workweek before calculating overtime.
Example for hourly employees:
If an employee earns $20 per hour and works 45 hours in one week, their overtime rate is $30 per hour. They would receive 40 hours at $20 ($800) plus 5 hours at $30 ($150), for a total of $950 for that week.
Example for salaried employees:
If a salaried employee earns $800 per week and works 50 hours, their hourly rate is $20 ($800 ÷ 40 hours). Their overtime rate is $30, so they would receive 10 overtime hours at $30 ($300) in addition to their salary, for a total of $1,100 that week.
Tipped employees are entitled to overtime compensation based on the full minimum wage, not the reduced cash wage for tipped workers. In Arizona, employers may take a tip credit of up to $3.00 per hour, but overtime must be calculated using the regular minimum wage of $14.70.
For example, if a tipped worker’s base pay is $11.70 per hour and they work 45 hours, the overtime rate is calculated using $14.70 × 1.5 = $22.05 per overtime hour, minus the tip credit, if applicable.
Under federal law, Arizona employers can require hourly and salaried employees to work overtime as long as they pay the correct overtime rate.
Mandatory overtime is legal, but employers cannot retaliate against employees for asserting their right to be paid for it.
Some industries may have additional safety regulations limiting overtime eligibility, but these are separate from overtime pay rules.
Employees in Arizona often face overtime pay issues due to employer mistakes or deliberate underpayment. Common violations include:
When these violations occur, employees may be entitled to unpaid overtime, interest, and additional damages equal to the unpaid amount.
While many employees are entitled to overtime pay, the FLSA and Arizona overtime laws recognize several exemptions. These exemptions are based on an employee’s job duties, pay structure, and sometimes the industry they work in. Employers often misuse these exemptions to avoid paying overtime, so understanding them is critical.
An employee may be considered exempt as an executive if they:
A common violation is giving an employee a management title without actual management duties and denying overtime pay.
This exemption applies to employees who:
Employers commonly violate Arizona overtime laws by classifying clerical workers as administrative exempt when their duties are routine and dictated by strict guidelines.
To qualify, an employee must:
Examples include licensed lawyers, doctors, and teachers.
Employees in this category:
Note: Inside sales employees are generally not exempt unless they meet very specific commission-based requirements under the FLSA.
Computer systems analysts, programmers, software engineers, and similar roles may be exempt if they perform highly specialized computer-related tasks or they are paid either on a salary basis or hourly at a federally set minimum rate.
Some industries in Arizona have special overtime provisions under federal law.
Nurses and other healthcare professionals may have overtime calculated under the 8/80 rule in hospitals, which allows overtime after 8 hours in a day or 80 hours in a 14-day period if there is a prior agreement.
Public safety employees may have different overtime thresholds under Section 7(k) of the FLSA, allowing for longer work periods before overtime applies, depending on the size of the department and work schedules.
Certain seasonal businesses, such as amusement parks or summer camps, may be exempt from federal overtime rules during the season they operate.
Overtime pay isn’t always straightforward. The calculation depends on whether the employee is paid hourly, salaried, or receives additional forms of pay like commissions and bonuses.
The regular rate is simply the hourly wage. Overtime is calculated as 1.5 × the regular hourly wage for each overtime hour worked.
The weekly salary is divided by 40 to determine the hourly rate, then multiplied by 1.5 for each hour over 40.
Nondiscretionary bonuses and commissions must be included in the regular rate calculation. The total pay (salary, hourly wages, bonuses, commissions) for the workweek is divided by total hours worked to determine the regular rate, and overtime is then based on that figure.
Overtime must be calculated on the full minimum wage, not the reduced cash wage. Any tip credit taken must be properly applied and may not reduce overtime pay below the legal rate.
If you are owed overtime pay, you can file a claim under the FLSA or through a lawsuit in court. The process often involves:
If you are owed overtime, you have options for recovery:
The statute of limitations for federal overtime claims is two years from the date of the violation, or three years if the employer’s violation was willful. While federal law provides two to three years to file, Arizona state wage claims generally must be filed within one year.
To comply with overtime laws, Arizona employers must:
Failure to meet these responsibilities can result in costly penalties, legal action, and reputational harm.
Employers who violate overtime laws may be required to:
The combination of back pay and damages can double the cost of unpaid overtime, making compliance far less expensive than violations.
If you suspect you are not being paid the overtime wages you earned, gather your pay stubs, schedules, time records, and any written agreements. This documentation will help prove your claim.
Speaking to an experienced employment lawyer early can help you understand your eligibility, calculate what you are owed, and take action before the statute of limitations runs out.
Overtime laws are complex, and many Arizona employees are denied the wages they deserve because of misclassification, calculation errors, or deliberate wage theft. Stone Rose Law represents employees across Arizona in wage and hour disputes, including unpaid overtime cases.
We can review your job duties, pay records, and classification to determine whether your employer has complied with state and federal overtime laws. If you are owed wages, we will work to recover them along with any additional damages allowed by law.
Call (480) 535-9003 today for a confidential consultation and protect your right to fair compensation.
