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New Hampshire Overtime Exceptions

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Are there any exceptions to the state overtime law for seasonal employers in

New Hampshire?

As a rule, most employees in New Hampshire are entitled to time-and-a-half when they work over 40 hours in a week. Simply put, this means that the employee must be paid 1.5 times his or her usual rate, for each additional hour over 40 per week. In most cases, this rate must include non-discretionary bonuses such as commissions or earned sales premiums.

This state law, by the way, is a part of the RSA 279, the most recently enacted New Hampshire minimum wage bill, which established the state minimum wage at $6.50 per hour beginning September 1, 2007.

However, there are some significant exceptions to the New Hampshire overtime law. Employees at an amusement or seasonal or recreational establishment may be exempt from overtime under the state law if the establishment does not operate more than 7 months in any calendar year. Since tourism is such a huge industry in

New Hampshire, this allows amusement parks and other businesses that are open only during the “busy season” to save money on overtime. Apparently, the state politicians have decided that having time off in the winter compensates for not being paid overtime in the summer.

Some seasonal businesses are open all year but do very little business in the winter.  These businesses, too, may be exempt from overtime under New Hampshire law, under certain circumstances. If a business’s average receipts for 6 months are 33 1/3 % — or less—of its receipts for the other 6 months, the business is also exempt from overtime. This means that employees who work more than 40 hours per week are paid their normal rate for all the hours that they work.

These provisions in the state law specifically exclude any employee or employer who is covered under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, the FLSA. This prevents any possible conflict of the state and federal laws regarding overtime in New Hampshire.