How to Calculate 8 and 80 Overtime for Nurses and Hospital Staff

What is 8 and 80 overtime?

Section 7(j) of the Fair Labor Standards Act lets hospitals and residential care establishments use a 14-day period in place of the 40-hour workweek, if there is an agreement made before the work is done. Overtime is then paid for hours over 8 in a day and hours over 80 in the 14 days, at 1.5 times the regular rate.

The name comes from those two numbers. It is meant to suit schedules built from long shifts, where a nurse might work three 12-hour shifts one week and four the next and never pass 40 hours in a week that is short.

Who can use 8 and 80?

Only hospitals and establishments that mainly care for the sick, the aged or the mentally ill who live on the premises. The employer must have an agreement with the employee before the work is done, must use a fixed and recurring 14-day period, and must pay overtime on both tests. Outside those employers, the normal 40-hour workweek applies.

Employees of other employers, and employees who work for a second employer, are paid under that employer’s rules. Police and fire employees fall under a different section with a longer work period, and Postal Service overtime follows union contracts, so none of those use 8 and 80.

How do you calculate 8 and 80 overtime step by step?

1. List the hours actually worked on each of the 14 days. Use hours worked, not scheduled hours.
2. Count the hours over 8 on each day. These are overtime whatever the 14-day total is.
3. Take the total hours, subtract the daily overtime hours, then subtract 80. Anything left is further overtime. This stops the same hour being counted twice.
4. Price it: regular rate × total hours, plus half the regular rate for every overtime hour.

Take seven 12-hour shifts in 14 days at $40 an hour. That is 84 hours. Four hours over 8 on each shift is 28 daily overtime hours, which leaves 56 regular hours, well under 80, so nothing more is added. The period pays $3,920.00.

Is 8 and 80 better than the 40-hour week?

It depends on the schedule. The same seven 12-hour shifts pay $3,920.00 under 8 and 80 but $3,520.00 under two normal 40-hour workweeks, because the daily overtime applies even in a week that stays under 40. A plain schedule of nine-hour days over ten days pays the same either way. The calculator prices both for your own schedule.

Shift differentials and bonuses go into the regular rate for the whole 14 days, as total pay divided by total hours. Paid time off is paid at the regular rate but does not add overtime hours.

Does 8 and 80 apply in California, New York and Texas?

The federal rule is the starting point everywhere. Texas has no overtime law of its own for private employers, so the federal act applies, including section 7(j). New York’s overtime rule is 1.5 times over 40 hours and follows the federal exemptions and methods, so check your agreement and the state labor department if unsure.

California’s daily overtime applies after 8 hours and double time after 12, and the federal 8 and 80 option is very narrow there. Many California healthcare employers use a 12-hour alternative workweek instead. The seventh-day rule applies only when you work all seven days of the workweek.

What mistakes are made with 8 and 80?

• Using scheduled hours instead of the hours actually worked.
• Counting the same hour twice, once as a daily overtime hour and again as an hour over 80.
• Applying 8 and 80 without an agreement made before the work, which the section requires.
• Leaving shift differentials and bonuses out of the regular rate for the 14 days.
• Changing the start of the 14-day period from one period to the next. The period has to be fixed and recurring, although it may begin on any day.

If your stub shows fewer overtime hours than the day-by-day count, ask payroll how the hours were split between the two tests, and for the start date of the period they used.

Common questions

Sources

Reviewed on 25 Oct 2026 against the published sources below. Laws and prices change, so check the current position before you rely on a figure.

• DOL Fact Sheet #54: Overtime Pay Requirements of the FLSA as Applied to Hospitals and Residential Care
• 29 CFR 778.601: Hospital and residential care employees (8 and 80)
• California DLSE: Overtime FAQ

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