Overtime rules in Colorado
On a $20 hourly rate Colorado pays $30.00 an hour for every hour past 12 in a workday, past 12 in a row, or past 40 in the week, whichever pays more. Two 14-hour shifts pay $40 more than the federal rule would, though the week is only 28 hours. Four 10-hour days pay exactly the same: Colorado's daily line is 12 hours, not 8.
| A week at $20 an hour | Colorado | Federal rule | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Two 14-hour days, 28 hours | $600 | $560 | +$40 |
| Three 14-hour days, 42 hours | $900 | $860 | +$40 |
| Four 10-hour days, 40 hours | $800 | $800 | No difference |
| Four 12-hour days, 48 hours | $1,040 | $1,040 | No difference |
| One 16-hour day, then four 8s, 48 hours | $1,040 | $1,040 | No difference |
When the daily rule matters
Colorado's 12-hour rule only changes your pay when long days fall in a short week. Once you pass 40 hours, the weekly rule catches the same hours, and nobody is paid the premium twice: a 16-hour day followed by four 8s is 48 hours and 8 hours of overtime either way, $1,040 on a $20 rate. That is why most rows in the table show no difference. There is no double time in Colorado.
Twelve hours in a row
The third test counts any 12 consecutive hours of work, even when they cross midnight into a second workday. A shift from 6 p.m. to 8 a.m. is 14 hours in a row, so 2 of them are overtime, though neither calendar day reached 12. The calculator above counts hours by day, so it cannot see a shift like that: add those hours to one day to get the right answer.
No comp time, no averaging
Colorado employers cannot give time off instead of time-and-a-half pay, and cannot average hours across weeks: 50 hours one week is 10 hours of overtime even if the next week is 30. The rules come from the state's Overtime and Minimum Pay Standards Order, which also lists the jobs that are exempt. If your pay depends on it, read the state labor department's overtime page.
Working out your own pay
If your week mixed two rates or included a shift differential, your regular rate is higher than your base, and the blended rate calculator works it out. The shift differential calculator handles night premiums, and overtime laws by state puts Colorado beside the rest.