Nurse pay is complicated. Your record of it shouldn't be.

Most hospitals pay overtime after 40 hours in a workweek. Federal law also lets hospitals and residential care facilities use the 8/80 system instead, if they agree it with employees before the work is done.

• Weekly: overtime for hours over 40 in each 7-day workweek.
• 8/80: a 14-day period, with overtime for hours over 8 in a day and over 80 in the period, whichever gives more.

With 12-hour shifts, 8/80 pays 4 overtime hours on every shift, so hospitals that schedule 12s almost always use the weekly system. Check your pay policy or contract to see which applies to you. An employer can't switch between the two to reduce overtime.

Night, weekend and charge differentials are part of your regular rate under the FLSA. Overtime has to be paid at 1.5× that blended rate.

Example: three 12-hour nights one week and four the next, at $45 base plus a $5 night differential. Week 2 has 48 hours, so 8 are overtime at 1.5 × $50 = $75 an hour, not 1.5 × $45 = $67.50. The difference is $60 for the pay period.

If you pick up shifts at different rates in the same week, the regular rate is the weighted average across all of them. The shift differential calculator shows the math for one week.

• Each shift's start and end, including shifts that cross midnight.
• Different pay rates per shift, for differentials, charge pay or picked-up shifts (Pro).
• More than one job in one place, for PRN or agency work alongside a staff role (Pro).
• Unpaid meal breaks, so you can spot breaks deducted on shifts you worked through.
• A PDF or CSV export of the pay period to compare with your paystub (Pro).

Some states pay daily overtime. California pays overtime after 8 hours in a workday unless an alternative workweek schedule applies, and Colorado pays it after 12. See the overtime calculator by state for your state's rules.