Is there a maximum number of hours that employees can work?

There is no maximum number of hours that most employees can work under the Fair Labor Standards Act. The law does not limit the number of hours that an employee can work in a workweek or other applicable work period unless child labor is involved (see ¶83,505 ). The law merely requires overtime compensation for long hours (see ¶34,200 ). However, most states do have laws that regulate the number of hours an employee may work in a day or week. These laws are not the same as overtime pay requirements; they declare that the employee may not work more than a set number of hours regardless of the rate of pay.

Maximum hours laws, as distinguished from overtime pay laws, usually apply only to particular industries in which long hours without rest may endanger not only the employee, but also coworkers or the public. These laws frequently provide for working time in excess of statutory limits for various emergencies. And, particularly in the transportation industry, they usually set standards for the period of rest between shifts of work, as well as for the length of the work periods themselves.

Be sure to check State Laws for any law(s) that apply in your state(s).