Payroll & time-tracking guides
Straight answers to the payroll and labor questions small businesses actually ask.
How to Calculate Overtime Pay
A clear, step-by-step guide to calculating overtime pay under the FLSA — the 40-hour rule, time-and-a-half, the regular rate, and a worked example.
What Is Time and a Half?
Time and a half means 1.5× an employee's regular pay rate. Learn when it applies, how to calculate it, and see examples.
What Is Buddy Punching (and How to Stop It)
Buddy punching is when one employee clocks in or out for another. Learn what it costs, why it happens, and how to prevent it with photo and GPS time clocks.
How to Do Payroll for a Small Business
A plain-English overview of running small-business payroll: collecting hours, calculating gross and net pay, taxes, pay schedules, and recordkeeping.
Exempt vs Non-Exempt Employees
The difference between exempt and non-exempt employees under the FLSA — who gets overtime, the salary and duties tests, and why misclassification is risky.
How to Track Employee Hours
Compare ways to track employee hours — paper, spreadsheets, and time clock apps — and learn the best practices for accurate, compliant records.
FLSA Recordkeeping Requirements
What employee time and pay records the FLSA requires, and how long to keep them — payroll records for 3 years, time cards for 2.
Biweekly vs Semimonthly Pay
Biweekly pays every two weeks (26 checks/year); semi-monthly pays twice a month (24 checks). Compare the two and how each affects overtime.
How Many Hours Is Full-Time?
There's no single legal definition of full-time, but 40 hours/week is standard and the ACA uses 30 hours/week. What employers should know.
How Many Hours Are in a Year?
There are 8,760 hours in a regular year (8,784 in a leap year). A standard full-time work year is about 2,080 hours. Here's the math.
Time Off in Lieu (TOIL): What It Is & How It Works
Time off in lieu (TOIL) gives employees paid time off instead of overtime pay. How it works, when it's allowed in the US, and how to track it.
How to Set Up Chrome Kiosk Mode for a Time Clock
How to lock a tablet or Chromebook into kiosk mode so it only runs your time clock — Chrome kiosk mode, iPad Guided Access, and Android steps.
PTO Meaning: What Does PTO Stand For?
PTO stands for paid time off — paid hours employees can take off for any reason. What PTO includes, how it differs from vacation and sick leave, and how it accrues.
Common Work Schedules Explained (2-2-3, 9/80, 4-10, DuPont)
What the 2-2-3, 9/80, 4-10, and DuPont work schedules mean, how the rotations work, and how each affects overtime. With scheduling tips.
How Many Work Hours Are in a Month?
A full-time month averages about 173 work hours (2,080 ÷ 12). How to calculate work hours per month and why it varies.
How to Calculate Hours Worked
How to calculate hours worked from clock-in and clock-out times: subtract breaks, convert minutes to decimals, and total the week — with worked examples.
What Counts as Hours Worked? (FLSA Compensable Time)
Which time must be paid: training, travel, on-call, short breaks, prep work. What the FLSA counts as compensable hours worked — and what doesn't count.
Do Salaried Employees Get Overtime?
Salaried doesn't automatically mean no overtime. Who's exempt, the salary and duties tests, and when salaried employees are owed time-and-a-half.
Can an Employer Change an Employee's Timesheet?
When employers can legally edit time cards (fixing errors) and when they can't (shaving hours), plus the audit-trail practices that protect both sides.
How to Calculate PTO Accrual
PTO accrual math made simple: per-hour, per-pay-period, and annual lump-sum methods, accrual-rate formulas, caps, and worked examples.
What Is a Pay Period? (And How Many Are in a Year)
Pay periods explained: weekly (52/year), biweekly (26), semimonthly (24), and monthly (12) — how they differ, and how overtime interacts with each.
What Is Shift Differential Pay?
Shift differential explained: extra pay for nights, weekends, or undesirable shifts — typical rates, how to calculate it, and how it affects overtime.
What Is Time Theft? (And How to Stop It)
Time theft explained — buddy punching, time padding, extended breaks — what it costs small businesses, and the controls that actually stop it.
The 9/80 Work Schedule, Explained
The 9/80 schedule gives every other Friday off: eight 9-hour days, one 8-hour day, and 80 hours over two weeks. How it works and how to avoid overtime traps.
Do You Get a Break on an 8-Hour Shift?
What breaks are required on an 8-hour shift — federal law vs the ~21 states that mandate meal periods, paid vs unpaid rules, and common employer policies.
Do Part-Time Employees Get Overtime?
Part-time employees earn overtime under the same rule as everyone else: 1.5× after 40 hours in a workweek. What that means in practice, plus state wrinkles.
How Late Can a Minor Work? (Hour Rules for Under-18s)
Work-hour limits for employees under 18: federal rules for 14–15-year-olds, what changes at 16, school-night curfews, and how states layer on stricter limits.
Is Overtime Taxed? (The 'No Tax on Overtime' Rule, Explained)
How overtime is taxed in 2026: the federal 'no tax on overtime' deduction, what portion of overtime pay qualifies, the income limits, and what's still withheld.
IHSS Timesheets, Explained (California)
How IHSS electronic timesheets work in California: submitting hours through the ESP portal or by phone, pay periods, deadlines, overtime limits, and common errors.
Gross vs. Net Pay: What's the Difference?
Gross pay is what you earn before deductions; net pay is what hits your bank account. How each is calculated, what comes out in between, and worked examples.
Leave of Absence: Types, Rules & How to Handle One
What a leave of absence is, the difference between paid and unpaid leave, when FMLA applies, and how small employers should document and track leave.