Connecticut (CT) Overtime Labor Law Requirements for Employers

Connecticut state statutes cover overtime law. In fact, the Connecticut law on overtime could be one of the most complicated state overtime laws that we’re going to look at.

I say that, and then I’m going to explain to you how the underpinnings of it are basically the same as most of other state overtime laws and the federal guidelines. As we’ve seen in other states, the cutoff for overtime starts in Connecticut at 40 hours a week. Any time spent working over that bar, and the employer has to pay his worker one and a half times the employee’s normal wages.

However, Connecticut law makes some room for employers and employees to define their workweeks on their own. In section 31-76e of the state law, Connecticut makes it clear that an employer and an employee can come to a contractual agreement that defines the workweek as some other length. This contract can also come about by collective bargaining. Such contracts, the law goes on to say, could be made up if the nature of the employees job leads to irregular work hours.

These contracts, to be valid, must meet the state minimum wage laws. And the overtime pay rate of 1.5 times the normal pay rate must hold up for any time worked over the defined work week length in the contract. What’s more, the contract must guarantee payment by the employer for up to 60 hours of work per week.

There’s another interesting aspect of Connecticut overtime law that we should look at. Namely, hospital workers can be exempt from the normal overtime laws in relation to length of work. If the hospital employer and the employee agreed to it beforehand, it’s legal for the worker to put in 14 consecutive days and have that stand as their “normal” workweek, instead of seven. In this case, any time over 8 hours per day, or 80 hours in a two-week period, would qualify for overtime pay.

The Connecticut Complete Labor Law poster is available reflecting the most current overtime laws including all of the federal labor laws.