U.S. Department of Labor
FLSA Hours Worked Advisor
Daylight Savings Time
Most states participate in Daylight Savings Time. Those employees working the graveyard shift when Daylight Savings Time begins work one hour less because the clocks are set ahead one hour. Those employees working the graveyard shift when Daylight Savings Time ends work an extra hour because the clocks are set back one hour at 2:00 a.m.
For example:
Your shift starts at 11:00 p.m. and ends at 7:30 a.m. the next day, you work an eight- hour shift and receive a 30-minute lunch break.
- On the Sunday that Daylight Savings Time starts at 2:00 a.m., you do not work the hour from 2:00 a.m. to 3:00 a.m. because at 2:00 a.m. all of the clocks are turned forward to 3:00 a.m. Thus, on this day you only worked seven hours, even though the schedule was for eight hours.
- On the Sunday that Daylight Savings Time ends at 2:00 a.m., you work the hour from 1:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m. twice because at 2:00 a.m. all of the clocks are turned back to 1:00 a.m. Thus, on this day you worked nine hours, even though the schedule only reflected eight hours.
The Fair Labor Standards Act requires that employees must be credited with all of the hours actually worked. Therefore, if you are in a work situation similar to that described in the above example, you worked seven hours on the day that Daylight Savings Time begins and nine hours on the day that Daylight Savings Time ends. This assumes, of course, that you actually worked the scheduled shift as in our example.
For more information, please contact your local Wage and Hour District Office.
