Overtime pay in Alberta
In Alberta, overtime is paid at 1.5 times your wage for hours over 8 in a day or over 44 in a week, whichever gives more overtime hours.
Gross pay this week
$1,265.00
Your gross pay for this week is $1,265.00 before tax in Alberta: 32 regular hours, 6 overtime hours, 9.5 holiday hours and holiday pay for one day.
| Pay | Hours | Rate | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Regular | 32 h | $20.00 | $640.00 |
| Overtime (1.5x) | 6 h | $30.00 | $180.00 |
| Holiday hours (1.5x) | 9.5 h | $30.00 | $285.00 |
| Holiday pay$160.00 for each holiday | $160.00 | ||
| Total | 47.5 h | $1,265.00 |
- Remembrance Day, November 11, 2026: worked 9.5 hours, plus $160.00 holiday pay.
Before tax and deductions. Uses Alberta employment standards. Your contract or union agreement may pay more.
Overtime rules in Alberta
- Add up daily overtime (hours over 8 each day) and weekly overtime (hours over 44 in the week). You get whichever total is greater, never both.
- Overtime is paid at 1.5 times your regular wage, or banked as time off under a written overtime agreement.
- Hours worked on a general holiday paid at 1.5 times do not count toward weekly overtime.
Official examples
Daily overtime is greater
Shifts of 9, 8, 10, 8 and 6 hours (41 hours) give 3 daily overtime hours and no weekly overtime, so 3 overtime hours. Source
Weekly overtime is greater
Shifts of 11, 11, 10, 12, 10 and 7 hours (61 hours) give 14 daily overtime hours and 17 weekly overtime hours. The greater, 17, is paid. Source
Holiday pay and working the holiday
An employee earning $25 an hour earned $4,000 over 20 days, an average daily wage of $200. Not working Canada Day pays $200. Working 8 hours pays 8 hours at $37.50 ($300) plus $200, so $500. Source
Holiday that is not normally a work day
If the holiday is not a regular work day: not worked pays $0. Working 8 hours at $25 pays 1.5 times, so $300, with no holiday pay added. Source
Stat holiday pay in Alberta
Alberta has 9 general holidays. If you qualify and the holiday falls on a day you would normally work, you get your average daily wage for it.
If you work a general holiday that is normally a work day in Alberta, you get your average daily wage plus 1.5 times your wage for the hours worked. If it is not normally a work day, you get 1.5 times your wage only.
Minimum wage and minimum shift pay
- Minimum wage: $15.00 an hour since October 1, 2018.
- Minimum shift pay: In Alberta, if you work less than 3 hours in a row after being called in or sent home early, you get the greater of your pay for the hours worked or 3 hours at minimum wage.
How the calculator works
- Each shift's paid hours are its end time minus its start time, minus your unpaid break. A shift that ends after midnight counts on the day it started, so a night shift that runs into a stat holiday is not paid the holiday rate here. Enter the holiday hours as their own shift if you want them counted.
- Daily overtime is counted first, where your province has it. Weekly overtime then counts only the hours that were not already daily overtime, so no hour is paid twice.
- Hours worked on a stat holiday are paid at the holiday rate. Holiday pay is added using your province's formula, estimated from your usual week.
- We check your wage against the minimum wage and flag short shifts that may earn minimum shift pay.
The result is gross pay before tax and deductions. It is an estimate based on employment standards law, not legal advice.
When these rules may not apply
This app uses each province's or territory's employment standards law, which sets the minimum your employer must pay. Your pay can differ if:
- Your job is federally regulated, such as banks, airlines, trucking across provinces, railways, telecom and federal Crown corporations. Choose Federal instead.
- You have a union collective agreement or a contract that pays more.
- You have an averaging agreement, a compressed work week or a flexible schedule approved under the law.
- Your job is exempt or has special rules, such as many managers, farm workers, some professionals, truck drivers, and oil and gas workers.
Common questions
When does overtime start in Alberta?
After 8 hours in a day or 44 hours in a week. You get whichever gives the greater number of overtime hours, at 1.5 times your wage.
Do I get both daily and weekly overtime in Alberta?
No. You get the greater of the two totals, so no hour is paid overtime twice.
How is general holiday pay calculated in Alberta?
It is your average daily wage: wages from the 4 weeks before the holiday, not counting overtime, vacation pay or holiday pay, divided by the days you worked.
What do I get for working a holiday in Alberta?
If it is normally a work day: your average daily wage plus 1.5 times your wage for the hours worked. If it is not normally a work day: 1.5 times your wage only.
Is Boxing Day a holiday in Alberta?
Only if your employer chooses to give it. Boxing Day, Easter Monday, Heritage Day and the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation are optional holidays in Alberta.
Sources
Official government pages and laws, checked . Rules change, so confirm details on the source before you act.
Other provinces and territories
- Overtime pay in Ontario
- Overtime pay in Quebec
- Overtime pay in British Columbia
- Overtime pay in Saskatchewan
- Overtime pay in Manitoba
- Overtime pay in New Brunswick
- Overtime pay in Nova Scotia
- Overtime pay in Prince Edward Island
- Overtime pay in Newfoundland and Labrador
- Overtime pay in Yukon
- Overtime pay in Northwest Territories
- Overtime pay in Nunavut
- Overtime pay in Federal