The overtime rate in South Africa is one and a half times your normal wage. That is the answer everyone gives.
It is also useless on its own, because there is a salary line above which the law gives you no right to overtime pay whatsoever. Most articles on this topic never mention it. Check which side of the line you are on before you do anything else.
Overtime and Premium Pay Calculator
Overtime, Sunday and public holiday pay under the BCEA. Checks your earnings threshold first, because above it none of this is a legal right.
Sunday and public holiday detail
Breakdown and how this works
The earnings threshold from 1 May 2026 is R269 600.90 a year, or R22 466.74 a month. Earn more than that and sections 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17(2) and 18(3) of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act do not apply to you. That means no statutory right to overtime pay, Sunday pay, a meal interval, rest periods or a night shift allowance. Your contract or bargaining council may still give you these, and if it does, your employer cannot simply take them away.
Careful with the word earnings. It means your regular annual pay before deductions, but it excludes transport allowances, subsistence allowances, achievement awards and overtime payments. It is not the same as your cost to company.
Overtime is paid at one and a half times your normal wage. It must be agreed, it is capped at 10 hours a week, and your total day may not exceed 12 hours. By agreement your employer may instead give you 30 minutes of paid time off for every hour, or 90 minutes of paid time off in place of payment.
Sunday work is paid at double your hourly rate, unless you ordinarily work Sundays, in which case it is one and a half times. Either way, if you work a shorter shift than usual you must still receive at least an ordinary day’s wage.
If a public holiday falls on a day you would normally work and you work it, you must be paid at least double your daily wage, or your daily wage plus what you earned for the hours, whichever is more. Note that this rule, in section 18(2), still applies even if you earn above the threshold. Only section 18(3), covering a public holiday on a day you would not normally work, falls away.
Your hourly rate is your monthly pay times 12, divided by 52, divided by your ordinary weekly hours. This is an estimate. Check your payslip and your contract.
The earnings threshold decides everything
Section 6(3) of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act lets the Minister set an earnings threshold. From 1 May 2026 that threshold is:
R269 600.90 a year. R22 466.74 a month.
It was published on 17 April 2026 and replaced the previous figure of R261 748.45, which had stood since April 2025.
Earn more than that and you are excluded from these sections of the BCEA:
| Section | What you lose |
|---|---|
| 9 | Limits on ordinary hours of work |
| 10 | Overtime pay |
| 11 | Compressed working week rules |
| 12 | Averaging of hours |
| 14 | Meal intervals |
| 15 | Daily and weekly rest periods |
| 16 | Sunday pay |
| 17(2) | Night shift allowance and transport |
| 18(3) | Public holiday pay on a day you would not normally work |
In plain terms: above the threshold, your employer may require you to work any reasonable hours needed to do your job, and does not have to pay you a cent extra for them.
Three things about the threshold nearly everyone gets wrong
"Earnings" is not your cost to company. It means your regular annual pay before deductions, including your own tax, pension and medical aid contributions. But it excludes your employer's contributions, and it excludes transport allowances, subsistence allowances, achievement awards and overtime payments. People check their package, get the wrong answer, and never claim.
Senior managers are out even below the threshold. If you have the authority to hire, discipline and dismiss staff, and to represent the employer internally and externally, most of the working time provisions do not apply to you regardless of what you earn.
Your contract still wins. If your contract or bargaining council promises you overtime pay, that promise is enforceable even if you earn above the threshold. Your employer cannot simply take it away because the law does not require it. Removing it means negotiating a change to your terms of employment, with your agreement.
The rules, if you are under the threshold
Ordinary hours are capped at 45 a week by section 9. Within that, you may work up to 9 hours a day if you work five days a week or fewer, or 8 hours a day if you work more than five days.
Overtime is voluntary. Section 10 requires agreement. Your employer cannot simply order it, though many contracts contain a standing agreement to work reasonable overtime.
Overtime is capped at 10 hours a week, and your total working day, ordinary hours plus overtime, may not exceed 12 hours.
Overtime is paid at 1.5 times your normal wage. By agreement, your employer may instead give you:
- Your normal pay for the hour plus 30 minutes of paid time off, or
- 90 minutes of paid time off instead of any payment
Note the arithmetic. Ninety minutes of paid time off for one hour worked is the same value as time and a half. Both options are lawful. Neither is a discount.
Two arrangements that change the maths
A compressed working week under section 11 lets you work up to 12 hours a day without overtime pay, by written agreement, provided you still do no more than 45 ordinary hours a week, no more than 10 hours of overtime a week, and no more than five days a week. This is how a four day week is done lawfully.
Averaging under section 12 allows a collective agreement to average your hours over a period of up to four months. Your hours may spike in a busy week without triggering overtime, as long as the average holds. This requires a collective agreement, not just your signature.
If your employer is claiming one of these, ask to see the agreement.
How your hourly rate is worked out
Your hourly rate is your monthly pay times 12, divided by 52, divided by your ordinary weekly hours.
On R15 000 a month and a 45 hour week, that is R76.92 an hour. Overtime at 1.5 times is R115.38 an hour. Ten hours of overtime in a week is worth R1 153.85.
The national minimum wage is R30.23 an hour from 1 March 2026, so overtime at the minimum wage is R45.35 an hour.
The other premium rates
Overtime is only one of four premium rates in the Act, and they do not stack the way people assume:
- Sunday pay: double your hourly rate, or 1.5 times if you ordinarily work Sundays
- Public holiday pay: at least double your daily wage. This one partly survives above the threshold
- Night shift allowance: required by law, but the Act never says how much
- Standby allowance: not in the Act at all
And you are entitled to a lunch break of one continuous hour after five hours of work, which your employer must pay for if you are required to work through it.
If your employer will not pay
Overtime disputes are monetary claims under section 73A of the BCEA. The route depends, again, on the threshold.
- Ask in writing. State the hours, the dates, the rate and the amount. Most employers settle at this point rather than create a paper trail.
- Refer the dispute to the CCMA for conciliation. This step is the same for everyone.
- If conciliation fails: below the threshold you may go to CCMA arbitration. Above the threshold you must go to the Labour Court, even if your employer would consent to the CCMA. That is a materially more expensive road, which is one more reason to know where you stand.
You can also lodge a complaint with the Department of Employment and Labour, whose inspectors can investigate a contravention and issue a compliance order.
Keep records. Your own dated log of hours worked is worth a great deal when your employer's timekeeping is vague.
Frequently asked questions
What is the overtime rate in South Africa? One and a half times your normal wage, under section 10 of the BCEA, provided you earn below the earnings threshold of R269 600.90 a year.
Can my employer force me to work overtime? No. Overtime requires agreement. Many contracts include a standing agreement to work reasonable overtime, so check yours.
How much overtime can I work? A maximum of 10 hours a week, and your total working day may not exceed 12 hours including ordinary hours.
Do I get overtime if I am on a salary? It depends on your earnings, not on whether you are paid a salary or a wage. Below R269 600.90 a year, yes. Above it, only if your contract says so.
Can my employer give me time off instead of overtime pay? Yes, by agreement. Either your normal pay plus 30 minutes off per hour, or 90 minutes of paid time off per hour with no payment.
What is the overtime rate on a Saturday? The BCEA does not treat Saturday specially. If the hours are overtime, they are paid at 1.5 times. Sunday and public holidays are the days with their own premium rates.
Sources
- Department of Employment and Labour, Basic Conditions of Employment Act 75 of 1997
The earnings threshold of R269 600.90 was published on 17 April 2026 and took effect on 1 May 2026. This is general information, not legal advice.
