Overtime pay
Overtime pay is extra money, or extra time off, for hours beyond the contracted week. UK law does not set a premium. Time and a half is a contract, not a statute. The floor under the hour is the National Minimum Wage, whatever the rota calls the shift.
What is required, and what is agreed
You only have to work overtime if the contract says so. The contract can agree a higher rate, the same rate, or time off in lieu. A part-time worker should not be treated less favourably than a full-time colleague. GOV.UK says they are normally paid their hourly rate for hours beyond their own contract, and that a premium usually applies only where they pass the full-time hours, or work unsocial hours, and a full-time colleague would be paid extra for the same thing. None of those is the default in the Working Time Regulations. The 48-hour average still applies to the hours, unless an adult has opted out in writing. A young worker cannot opt out, and the usual limit is 8 hours a day and 40 hours a week. Working more does not become lawful because the extra hour is labelled overtime.
The minimum wage is worked out over the pay reference period, not on the one hour that fell on Sunday. Unpaid extra time can pull the average under the rate for that person’s age. A premium you do pay can count towards the rate, but it does not excuse a different hour that was unpaid. Time off in lieu is not a repair for a week that already fell short. The hours still happened. Read the minimum-wage guide for the rates from 1 April 2026, and the time off in lieu guide for the difference between a balance of hours and a wage.
Holiday pay, and what Shiftbrook records
Regular overtime can be part of normal remuneration for four of the 5.6 weeks of statutory holiday. The other 1.6 weeks can be basic pay, and a shift premium that is simply how that week is always worked belongs in basic pay too. Many employers pay all 5.6 weeks at the normal rate and do not keep two pots. The holiday pay calculator estimates a figure from numbers you type. It does not know which hours were overtime.
Shiftbrook stores the shift and the approved timesheet. It does not store a rate, a multiplier, or a threshold after which the hour costs more. Approved hours download as a CSV. Payroll applies the contract. If the extra shift was not on the rota, add it before the week is approved, so the CSV and the floor match.
Sources
Minimum wage · Time off in lieu · Holiday pay calculator · Timesheets