PeopleMuster

Overtime log template

An overtime log is one person's running record of extra time, kept day by day through a pay period. Each line compares when the shift was meant to end with when the person actually checked out, then adds the difference to a running total. At the end of the period, hours times your own rate times the multiplier gives the gross overtime pay, before any deduction.

Give one log to each person who works extra time often, and keep it for the length of the pay period. The person fills it in, a manager initials each line. For a whole team's approved overtime in one monthly ledger, use the overtime approval record, which works at team level.

OVERTIME LOG
Name: [EMPLOYEE NAME]
Pay period: [PERIOD START] to [PERIOD END]
Usual shift: [SHIFT NAME], ends [SHIFT END]
Your hourly rate: [HOURLY RATE]
Overtime multiplier: [MULTIPLIER]

Date | Scheduled end | Actual check-out | Extra minutes | Extra hours | Running total (h) | Reason | Manager initials
[DATE] | [SHIFT END] | [CHECK-OUT TIME] | ___ | __.__ | __.__ | [REASON] | ____
[DATE] | [SHIFT END] | [CHECK-OUT TIME] | ___ | __.__ | __.__ | [REASON] | ____
[DATE] | [SHIFT END] | [CHECK-OUT TIME] | ___ | __.__ | __.__ | [REASON] | ____
[DATE] | [SHIFT END] | [CHECK-OUT TIME] | ___ | __.__ | __.__ | [REASON] | ____
[DATE] | [SHIFT END] | [CHECK-OUT TIME] | ___ | __.__ | __.__ | [REASON] | ____
[DATE] | [SHIFT END] | [CHECK-OUT TIME] | ___ | __.__ | __.__ | [REASON] | ____
[DATE] | [SHIFT END] | [CHECK-OUT TIME] | ___ | __.__ | __.__ | [REASON] | ____
[DATE] | [SHIFT END] | [CHECK-OUT TIME] | ___ | __.__ | __.__ | [REASON] | ____

END OF PERIOD
Total extra hours: [TOTAL EXTRA HOURS]
Taken as time off instead: [HOURS AS TIME OFF]
Hours to be paid: [TOTAL EXTRA HOURS] - [HOURS AS TIME OFF] = [PAID EXTRA HOURS]
Gross overtime pay: [PAID EXTRA HOURS] x [HOURLY RATE] x [MULTIPLIER] = [GROSS OVERTIME PAY]
(gross, before any deduction)

Employee: [EMPLOYEE NAME]  Date: [SIGN DATE]
Manager: [MANAGER NAME]  Date: [SIGN DATE]

What to put in each blank

[SHIFT END]
Write the time the shift is scheduled to finish, on a 24-hour clock, like 19:00.
[CHECK-OUT TIME]
Copy the real check-out from the attendance record or the punch clock, not the time someone remembers leaving.
[MULTIPLIER]
Enter the multiplier your policy or contract sets for extra hours, such as 1.5. Use 1 where extra time is paid at the normal rate.
[HOURLY RATE]
Enter the person's normal hourly rate as a plain number. The log never needs a currency.
[HOURS AS TIME OFF]
Record any extra hours the person chose to take back as time off. They come out of the paid total.
[GROSS OVERTIME PAY]
Multiply paid extra hours by the rate and the multiplier. 6 hours at a rate of 20 and a multiplier of 1.5 is 180, gross.

Before you send it

  • Work out extra minutes first, then convert to hours by dividing by 60. 45 extra minutes is 0.75 hours, not 0.45.
  • Update the running total on every line. It shows mid-period when someone is heading for a heavy fortnight, while you can still rebalance the rota.
  • Ask for a manager's initials within a day. Overtime signed a week late turns into an argument about whether it happened.
  • Keep the reason short and from a fixed set: cover, deadline, incident, handover. Free text can't be counted.

PeopleMuster records every date's check-in, check-out and working hours beside the person's assigned shift, so each line of this log can be read straight off the attendance record.

Questions people ask about this letter

How do I calculate overtime from check-out times?

Subtract the scheduled shift end from the actual check-out to get extra minutes, then divide by 60. A 19:00 shift end and a 20:30 check-out gives 90 minutes, which is 1.5 extra hours.

How is gross overtime pay worked out?

Multiply the paid extra hours by the normal hourly rate and by the overtime multiplier. 4 hours at a rate of 30 with a 1.5 multiplier comes to 180. That figure is gross, before any deduction.

Should early starts count on an overtime log?

Count them if your policy treats time before the shift as work, and log them on their own line with the reason. Keeping early starts and late finishes apart shows which end of the day is stretching.

Other templates