The rule
| Illinois | |
|---|---|
| Weekly threshold | Over 40 hours in a workweek: 1.5 times the regular rate |
| Daily threshold | None. Overtime is counted by the workweek, as the employer defines it |
| Holidays and Sundays | No premium required unless those hours take the week over 40. If the employer's policy promises time and a half or double time, the employer must honor it |
| Comp time | Not legal in place of overtime pay in the private sector |
| Who is covered | Employees covered by the Illinois Minimum Wage Law who are not in an exempt category |
| Exemptions | Executive, administrative, and professional employees as defined by the FLSA; agricultural workers; salespeople and mechanics at vehicle and farm equipment dealers; certain commissioned employees; and others listed by IDOL |
How Illinois counts the week
The Illinois Department of Labor's FAQ puts the rule simply: you are entitled to time and one-half your regular rate if you worked over 40 hours in a workweek, and the workweek is whatever fixed period the employer has defined. Long days do not matter on their own. A 12-hour Saturday is regular pay if the week ends at 40.
The FAQ also rules out the common workaround: compensatory time off in place of overtime is not legal for private employers. Shifting hours inside the same workweek to stay at 40 is fine; banking Friday's overtime for a day off next month is not.
Worked example: a 30-person distribution warehouse
A picker paid $18.50 an hour works five 8-hour days and a 6-hour Sunday during inventory: 46 hours in the workweek.
- Sunday carries no premium by itself. It is overtime because the week is over 40.
- 40 hours at $18.50: $740. 6 hours at $27.75 (1.5 times $18.50): $166.50. Gross: $906.50.
- If the handbook promises double time on Sundays, the employer must pay $37 for those 6 hours instead, because the FAQ says a more generous policy is enforceable.
How to track it
The whole rule turns on each employee's weekly total, so define the workweek in the time clock exactly as payroll does and count every paid minute, including the 20-minute meal break on days it is paid because the employee worked through it.
ClockOut shows week-to-date hours on every punch, flags anyone projected to pass 40 before the schedule ends, and restricts clock-ins to the scheduled window so a 40-hour schedule does not turn into 42 hours of early arrivals.
Illinois overtime FAQ
Does Illinois have daily overtime?
No. Illinois counts overtime by hours over 40 in the workweek only. A long day earns overtime only if the week's total goes past 40.
Is Sunday or holiday work overtime in Illinois?
Only if it takes the week over 40 hours. There is no separate premium unless the employer's own policy promises one, in which case the employer must honor it.
Can I give comp time instead of overtime pay?
No. IDOL states that compensatory time off in place of payment for overtime is not legal in the private sector.
Who is exempt from overtime in Illinois?
Executive, administrative, and professional employees under the FLSA definitions, agricultural workers, salespeople and mechanics at vehicle and farm equipment dealerships, certain commissioned employees, and a few other categories listed in IDOL's FAQ.
Related pages
Sources, checked September 9, 2026
This is general information, not legal advice. Rules change; check the linked source.