Overtime Tax Break: What It Means for Businesses
Overtime just got a tax break—but what does that really mean for employees and employers? With the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) on July 4, 2025) overtime premiums are now partially shielded from federal income tax. In this article, we will outline the details of the change and its impact on … Continue reading “Overtime Tax Break: What It Means for Businesses”
The 32-Hour Workweek: What It Means for 24/7 Manufacturing
How can a 24/7 operation maintain full coverage and control labor costs if every hour beyond 32 requires overtime pay?
Overtime: A Grab-Bag of Information
If you manage a shiftwork operation or if you are a Human Resource manager in a shiftwork operation or if you are a shift worker then – Overtime is a big deal Based on my 30 years of experience working with shift workers and shiftwork operations, I consider myself to be an overtime expert. I … Continue reading “Overtime: A Grab-Bag of Information”
5 Things You Should Know About Overtime
Quantity Matters. If your workforce is complaining about overtime, don’t assume that it’s always because there is too much. It may be just the opposite. In most workforces, about 20% of your workforce will avoid all overtime. At the same time, about 20% of your workforce will work all the overtime they can get. The … Continue reading “5 Things You Should Know About Overtime”
The best way to schedule your maintenance crew in a 24/7 operation
Maintenance Managers, you know the drill – Keep the equipment running and still, somehow, get your maintenance done. On a 5-day schedule, this typically means Maintenance “maintains” during the week and “repairs” during the weekend. When a plant shifts to 24/7 operations, the first thought of maintenance people is “Where do we go now?” The … Continue reading “The best way to schedule your maintenance crew in a 24/7 operation”
Reduce Overtime: Fact vs. Fiction
Many companies believe that solving overtime issues is as simple as implementing the “perfect schedule” to save significant costs. While scheduling plays a critical role, the truth about overtime is more nuanced. In this article, we’ll explore when schedule changes can genuinely reduce costs, and discuss how overtime impacts your workforce and operations. Let’s look … Continue reading “Reduce Overtime: Fact vs. Fiction”
Staffing, overtime and your schedule
One of the most common and misunderstood issues surrounding schedules is the relationship between staffing, overtime and the schedule itself. The reality is that a schedule has no impact on the quantity of overtime your site is experiencing. Overtime is a function of (1) How much work is there to do and (2) How many … Continue reading “Staffing, overtime and your schedule”
Is Overtime Really a Problem?
I recently participated in an online forum about the “Evils of Overtime.” I was surprised at how uniformly overtime is seen as something to be avoided. Its as if overtime was a measurement of how poorly you were managing your workforce. Here was one of my comments: Overtime is only a problem if you see … Continue reading “Is Overtime Really a Problem?”
The impact of overtime on salaried personnel
Since President Obama signed (28 May 2016) legislation raising the minimum bar for salaried people to qualify for overtime, I have been getting two questions: (1) What does this mean and (2) How does it affect my shiftwork operation. The answer to the first is fairly straight forward. If you have a salaried person at … Continue reading “The impact of overtime on salaried personnel”
When is high overtime appropriate?
We are typically asked about ways to lower overtime. It is clear that most companies view overtime as a necessary evil. They try to get it as low as possible and consider all overtime reduction as cost savings. In many instances, they are right. However, just as often, they are wrong. From a pure tangible … Continue reading “When is high overtime appropriate?”