Overtime Pay
Calculator Canada
Calculate overtime pay for any Canadian province. Enter your hourly rate and hours worked — the calculator applies the exact Employment Standards rules including BC's daily double-time after 12 hours.
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Overtime calculations are based on published employment standards as of May 2026. Many exemptions exist for managers, certain industries, and commission employees. Always verify with your province's employment standards office. Not legal advice. Terms →
BC has both daily and weekly triggers. Hours over 8/day → 1.5×. Hours over 12/day → 2× (double time). Hours over 40/week → 1.5×. If both daily and weekly apply, you take the greater amount — you don't add them together.
Ontario has no daily overtime trigger. Overtime starts after 44 hours in a single work week at 1.5× regular pay. Ontario allows time-banking agreements where employees take paid time off instead of overtime pay, at 1.5× the overtime hours.
Alberta overtime triggers after 8 hours in a day OR 44 hours in a week — whichever produces more overtime hours. Hours already paid at overtime for the daily calculation don't count toward the weekly threshold.
Most provinces allow employees to bank overtime hours as paid time off at the 1.5× rate instead of immediate payment. This must be agreed in writing. Banked hours are typically capped and must be used within 3–12 months depending on the province.
Overtime rules most employees don't know they're entitled to
Overtime pay is governed by provincial employment standards, not company policy — and a surprising number of Canadians are owed overtime they've simply never claimed because they assumed their salary covered it.
Salaried doesn't always mean exempt
A common misconception is that being paid a salary automatically excludes you from overtime entitlement. In most provinces, salary status alone doesn't matter — what matters is whether your specific role falls under a recognized exemption, such as genuine managerial duties with real decision-making authority. Many people with "manager" in their title but no actual hiring, firing, or scheduling authority are still legally entitled to overtime, regardless of how they're paid.
The overtime threshold isn't the same everywhere
Most provinces trigger overtime after 44 hours in a week, but Ontario and a few others use a 44-hour weekly threshold while some sectors have different rules entirely. Alberta uses a daily threshold (over 8 hours in a day) in addition to the weekly one, whichever results in more overtime owed. Always check your specific province's employment standards rather than assuming the common "over 40 hours" rule applies everywhere — it doesn't.
Banked time isn't always a fair trade
Some employers offer time off in lieu of overtime pay instead of the 1.5x premium. This is legal in most provinces, but only if the banked time is also paid at 1.5x — meaning one hour of overtime should bank as 1.5 hours of time off, not a straight one-for-one trade. Banked time is also typically required to be used within a set window (often 3 months, sometimes up to a year), after which unused banked overtime should be paid out in cash.
Misclassification as a contractor doesn't remove your rights
Some employers label workers as independent contractors specifically to avoid overtime and other employment standards obligations. Provincial labour boards look past the label and examine the actual working relationship — control over hours, use of company equipment, exclusivity — to determine whether someone is genuinely self-employed or a misclassified employee. If the substance of the relationship looks like employment, overtime entitlement can still apply regardless of what the contract calls you.
Frequently asked questions
Am I exempt from overtime?
Most Canadian workers — including most salaried employees — are entitled to overtime. The main exemptions are actual managers and supervisors who perform genuine management functions, certain professionals (lawyers, engineers, doctors), and some industry-specific roles (farm workers, truck drivers under certain conditions). Having "manager" in your title does not automatically exempt you.
Does overtime apply to salaried employees?
Yes, in most cases. Being paid a salary does not remove your right to overtime. Your overtime rate is calculated based on your implied hourly rate (annual salary ÷ standard hours). Employers cannot avoid overtime by converting hourly workers to salary.
What is time-banking?
Instead of receiving overtime pay immediately, you and your employer can agree in writing to bank the overtime hours as future paid time off at 1.5 hours off per overtime hour worked. For example, 4 hours of overtime = 6 hours of banked time off. The time must typically be taken within 3 months (up to 12 months in some provinces).