If your employer pays you a salary and expects you to work fifty, sixty, or more hours a week without extra pay, you may be owed significant back wages. Can salary workers get overtime in California? In many cases, yes — because a salary alone does not make an employee exempt from overtime under California law. Whether you qualify for overtime depends on specific legal criteria, not simply on how your employer has chosen to classify you.
The Misconception About Salaried Employees and Overtime
One of the most persistent misconceptions in California employment law is that salaried workers are automatically ineligible for overtime pay. Employers throughout Silicon Valley and Santa Clara County frequently classify employees as salaried and exempt, then require those employees to work well beyond forty hours per week without additional compensation. In many of those cases, the classification is unlawful.
California law does not determine overtime eligibility based on whether an employee receives a salary. The determinative question is whether the employee meets the legal criteria for an exemption. A salaried employee who does not qualify for a recognized exemption is entitled to overtime pay under the California Labor Code, regardless of how the employer has chosen to characterize the position.
"Paying a salary does not make an employee exempt from overtime. The exemption must be earned by meeting specific legal criteria — not assumed."
How California Overtime Law Works
California overtime law is more protective than federal law. Under the California Labor Code and the applicable Industrial Welfare Commission Wage Orders, non-exempt employees are entitled to:
- 1.5x pay for hours worked beyond 8 in a single workday
- 1.5x pay for hours worked beyond 40 in a workweek
- 1.5x pay for the first 8 hours on the 7th consecutive workday
- 2x pay for hours beyond 12 in a single workday
- 2x pay for all hours beyond 8 on the 7th consecutive workday
These thresholds apply on a daily basis — which distinguishes California from federal law, which only requires overtime after 40 hours in a week. A Silicon Valley employee who works 10 hours each day, Monday through Friday, has earned overtime on each of those days under California law.
Which Salaried Employees Are Exempt From Overtime?
California recognizes several exemption categories. The most commonly applied in technology and professional services are the white-collar exemptions — executive, administrative, and professional. To qualify for any white-collar exemption, an employee must satisfy two independent requirements:
Salary threshold:
The employee must earn a monthly salary of at least twice the state minimum wage for full-time employment. This threshold adjusts automatically when the California minimum wage increases.
Duties test:
More than 50% of the employee's work time must be spent on qualifying exempt duties.
Concrete example: A Saratoga-area company classifies its project coordinators as "administrative exempt" and pays them a qualifying salary. However, most of their time is spent executing tasks assigned by senior managers — not exercising independent judgment on significant business matters. Because the duties test is not met, those coordinators are non-exempt and entitled to California overtime regardless of their salary.
The executive, administrative, and professional exemptions each have specific duties requirements that must be satisfied independently of the salary threshold.
The Computer Professional Exemption in Silicon Valley
California Labor Code section 515.5 exempts certain computer software employees from overtime, but only if they meet a compensation threshold (updated annually by the Department of Industrial Relations) and primarily engage in qualifying intellectual or creative work — such as design, development, analysis, testing, or modification of computer systems.
Employees engaged primarily in routine computer operation, data entry, or technical support do not qualify for this exemption regardless of compensation level.
"The computer professional exemption is narrower than many Silicon Valley employers assume. Job title and salary alone do not establish exempt status."
What Happens When an Employer Misclassifies a Salaried Employee?
When an employer improperly classifies a salaried employee as exempt, the consequences include:
- Unpaid overtime recoverable up to 3 years back under the California Labor Code (4 years under the Unfair Competition Law)
- Waiting time penalties if unpaid wages were not paid upon termination
- Meal and rest period premiums if the employee was denied required breaks
- PAGA civil penalties if other employees were similarly affected
- Attorneys' fees and costs if the employee prevails
McLellan Law Group represents clients in Saratoga, San Jose, Cupertino, Los Gatos, and throughout Silicon Valley and Santa Clara County.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes — a salaried employee in California is entitled to overtime unless they satisfy both the salary threshold and the duties test for a recognized exemption. Paying a salary alone does not establish exempt status. Many employees classified as exempt by their employers do not actually meet the legal criteria and are owed significant back pay.
Non-exempt employees receive 1.5x their regular rate for hours beyond 8 in a workday or 40 in a workweek, and 2x their regular rate for hours beyond 12 in a single day. California's daily overtime threshold makes it one of the most protective overtime regimes in the country.
To qualify for a white-collar exemption, an employee must earn a monthly salary of at least twice the state minimum wage for full-time employment. This threshold adjusts automatically when the California minimum wage increases — employers who fail to update exempt salaries may inadvertently lose the exemption.
A PAGA claim lets California employees act as private attorneys general to recover civil penalties for Labor Code violations affecting themselves and similarly situated coworkers. If you have been misclassified or denied overtime, a labor attorney in Saratoga, CA can evaluate whether a PAGA claim is appropriate in your situation.
Under the California Labor Code, the lookback period is generally 3 years from the date of the violation. Under the Unfair Competition Law, it extends to 4 years. Employees misclassified for extended periods may be entitled to substantial back pay.
ADVERTISING MATERIAL DISCLAIMER — This communication is an advertisement for legal services by McLellan Law Group, LLP. The content is intended for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice. Each case and its facts are unique, and the outcomes mentioned in this advertisement, if any, are not guarantees of future results. Responsible Lawyer: Claire Melehani, Esq., 20665 4th Street, Suite 202, Saratoga, CA 95070.
