Easy Overtime Pay Calculation: Overtime pay varies depending on the monthly salary, the amount of overtime worked, and the sector of employment. Overtime can be calculated weekly or biweekly. Work on official holidays is paid at a higher overtime rate. Under Labor Law No. 4857, employees are entitled to a 45-hour work week; work beyond that is considered overtime and its limits are defined by law. For every hour considered overtime, employers must pay at least a 50% premium over the hourly wage. Employers may, with the employee’s consent, convert overtime hours into paid time off instead of cash payment.
What You Need to Know About Overtime
Any work that exceeds the weekly working time is considered overtime. According to the Labor Law, the threshold for overtime is exceeding 45 hours per week. It is also prohibited to work more than 11 hours in a single day, even with the employee’s agreement. The employee’s consent does not change this legal limit.
Those who cannot perform overtime include:
- Employees under 18 years of age are not entitled to overtime.
- Workers whose health conditions make them unfit for additional work cannot perform overtime.
- Employees who have recently given birth, who are pregnant, who are breastfeeding, or who work under part-time contracts generally cannot be required to do overtime.
How Is Overtime Pay Calculated?
Under the Labor Law, any work beyond 45 hours per week is classified as overtime. Employers must pay an additional fee for overtime. The overtime payment is calculated according to specific criteria: each overtime hour must be paid with at least a 50% premium over the regular hourly wage.
What Is the Simplest Way to Calculate Overtime?
To calculate overtime pay, you must first know the employee’s monthly salary. Then determine the hourly wage by dividing the monthly salary by 225, which represents the standard monthly working hours used for calculation. To find the overtime rate, multiply the hourly wage by 1.5. Finally, multiply this overtime hourly rate by the number of overtime hours worked to get the total overtime payment.
For example, if an employee earns 3,000 TL per month: divide 3,000 by 225 to find the hourly wage, which equals 13.33 TL. Multiply that by 1.5 to get the overtime hourly rate: 19.99 TL. If the employee worked 5 hours of overtime, multiply 19.99 TL by 5, resulting in an overtime payment of 99.95 TL.
What Were Overtime Rates Announced for 2021?
According to budget proposals at the time, overtime rates for public employees were increased by 6.19% for 2021. As a result, certain previously applied hourly overtime rates rose—for example, a general reference rate moved from 2.26 TL to 2.40 TL per hour. Staff in specific offices and positions had distinct limits and slightly different hourly rates depending on assignment and monthly overtime caps.
Different public institutions set maximum monthly overtime caps and separate hourly rates for categories such as central administration drivers and dormitory staff. Higher education and technical school personnel may have different specified hourly rates, and there are legal limits preventing monthly overtime hours from exceeding a defined maximum.
Is There a Statute of Limitations for Overtime Claims?
Employees’ rights to unpaid overtime are protected under Labor Law No. 4857. Overtime wage claims are subject to a five-year statute of limitations. As long as that period has not expired, employees may claim unpaid overtime.
Which Occupations Cannot Claim Overtime Pay?
Overtime pay cannot be claimed in certain occupations or under specific conditions. Examples include:
- Senior managers who receive high salaries and have authority over their own working hours are generally not entitled to overtime pay, as their remuneration covers managerial responsibilities and variable schedules.
- Concierge or building caretakers often cannot claim overtime due to living on-site and having flexible hours that are considered part of their role.
- Under traffic regulations, drivers have strict daily driving limits; some driving roles have specific restrictions that limit overtime entitlement. For instance, drivers may be restricted to a certain number of hours per day or week, affecting overtime calculations.
- Medical sales representatives and other staff whose schedules are self-determined may not be eligible to claim overtime in practice, depending on contractual terms and job structure.
These are examples and whether overtime can be claimed may vary by job functions, contracts, and applicable legal provisions.
Who Is Not Eligible for Overtime Pay?
According to the Labor Law, workers who cannot perform overtime include:
- Workers who are under 18 years old.
- Workers deemed medically unfit for additional work, even if they previously agreed to extra hours in their contract.
- Pregnant workers, those who have recently given birth, and those who are breastfeeding.
- Part-time employees and workers on short-term contracts who are not covered for overtime by their contract terms.
Work types where overtime cannot be imposed include:
- Work performed during designated night periods where additional hours are restricted.
- Hazardous environments such as mining and laying underground cables, where overtime is legally limited or prohibited.
- Underground and underwater construction tasks like tunnels and sewers, which have strict working time rules.
- Jobs whose health regulations require daily work durations of 7.5 hours or less; overtime cannot be imposed in these positions.
Overtime Conditions
Overtime work is regulated by law; continuous or unlimited overtime is not permitted. The standard legal work week is 45 hours. Any work beyond 45 hours per week is considered overtime. The annual limit for overtime that an employee can perform is 270 hours. This yearly cap applies regardless of the employee’s consent.
Daily working hours cannot exceed 11 hours under any circumstances. Employers are not allowed to require employees to work more than 11 hours a day. In overtime accounting:
- Overtime periods less than or equal to half an hour are rounded and treated as half an hour.
- Overtime exceeding half an hour but less than an hour is rounded up and calculated as a full hour.
Breaks taken during work are not included in the calculation of working time for overtime. When calculating daily working hours, breaks are deducted and only the actual start-to-finish work time is considered.