4 Hour Minimum Shift California | California 4-Hour Minimum Pay for Shift (2024)

Under California labor law, employees who normally work 8-hour shifts are guaranteed 4 hours minimum pay for any day where they are scheduled or could have a shift. If an employee has to call in, report in, text message, check email, or login to a website to see if he or she has a shift, that employee is entitled to half a day’s page. For part-time employees with irregular work days, if shifts are 8 hours and the employee doesn’t know in advance on any given day if they are scheduled, California law requires compensation for a 4 hour minimum shift. The same minimum-shift rule applies if the employee reports to work but is sent home early.

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California's 4-Hour Minimum Pay Rule

California’s reporting-time pay law says that if a California non-exempt employee has to “report” to work, they must receive at least half their regular hours. A California appellate court recently said that “report” to work includes not only being physically present, but also having to call in to work to see if you are scheduled. The court held that:

telephonic call-in requirements … trigger reporting time pay.

If an employee’s typical shift is less than four hours, California reporting-time law requires that the employee be paid a minimum of two hours at the employee’s regular rate of pay. On the flip side, if an employee’s typical shift is more than 8 hours and the employee only learns same-day whether they are scheduled, the employee is only entitled to a maximum of four hours pay in reporting-time penalties.

4 Hour Minimum Shift California | California 4-Hour Minimum Pay for Shift (1)

Does California labor law require a 4-hour minimum shift?

No, California law does not require that employers have shifts of only 4 hours or more. The California call-in rule only requires that whenever an employee has to check-in to see if they have a shift scheduled that day, the employer must pay them a half shift’s worth of pay if they aren’t scheduled. Because a typical shift is 8 hours, in practice, the rule means that most shift workers must receive at least 4 hours pay if their employer uses a call-in scheduling system.

But there is no minimum shift length. An employer can have shifts of only 1.5 hours. The California rule, however, requires that if a shift is cancelled or not scheduled last minute, an employee with a 1.5-hour shift must receive a minimum of two hours in reporting-time penalties.

Read More about California Labor Law

California Independent Contractor Law

California Overtime Law

California Minimum Wage Law

California Final Paycheck Law

California Meal/Rest Break Law

Differences: California vs. Federal Labor Law

California Exempt Employee Law

California WARN Act: Layoffs

See Also
Confucianism

California Vacation Law

California Off-the-Clock Law

California Paystub Law

4 Hour Minimum Shift California

Our California Employment Practice

Our California employment attorneys – with over 50 years of collective experience litigating under California employment law – know how to fight for employees’ rights and get them the money they deserve.We’ve recovered tens of millions of dollars for California employees and represent individuals as well as class actions in virtually every area of California employment and labor laws: California overtime law, off the clock violations in CA, breach of contract disputes, California independent contractor law, sexual harassment, employee misclassification, discrimination, as well as mass layoffs in violation of the California WARN Act. Our California employment lawyers are repeatedly recognized for their expertise litigating in California. Founding partner Eric Gibbs has been selected as one of the Top Plaintiff Lawyers in California. And seventeen of the firm’s attorneys were selected as Northern California Super Lawyers and Rising Stars, a distinction received by less than 5% of attorneys in Northern California.

About Us

Gibbs Law Group is a California-based law firm committed to protecting the rights of clients nationwide who have been harmed by corporate misconduct. We represent individuals, whistleblowers, employees, and small businesses across the U.S. against the world’s largest corporations. Our award-winning lawyers have achieved landmark recoveries and over a billion dollars for our clients in high-stakes class action and individual cases involving consumer protection, data breach, digital privacy, and federal and California employment lawsuits. Our attorneys have received numerous honors for their work, including “Top Plaintiff Lawyers in California,”“Top Class Action Attorneys Under 40,” “Consumer Protection MVP,” “Best Lawyers in America,” and “Top Cybersecurity/ Privacy Attorneys Under 40.”

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4 Hour Minimum Shift California | California 4-Hour Minimum Pay for Shift (2024)

FAQs

4 Hour Minimum Shift California | California 4-Hour Minimum Pay for Shift? ›

According to California's 4-hour minimum pay rule, also known as the reporting time pay law, if an employee is scheduled to work a shift and reports to work as scheduled, they are entitled to receive compensation for at least half of their scheduled shift or for two hours, whichever is greater.

What is the two hour pay rule in California? ›

Yes, you are entitled to one hour of reporting time pay. Under the law, if an employee is required to report to work a second time in any one workday and is furnished less than two hours of work on the second reporting, he or she must be paid for two hours at his or her regular rate of pay.

Does California have a minimum time between shifts? ›

In California, there is no mandated minimum time between shifts according to labor laws. This means that employers are not legally required to provide a specific amount of time between shifts. The absence of a minimum time between shifts is applicable throughout most cities and regions within the state of California.

What is the minimum length of a work shift? ›

According to federal labor laws, there is no specific minimum shift length for employees. However, some states have enacted their own regulations regarding minimum shift length. It`s to check laws to your state. Can an employer schedule a shift for less than 4 hours?

Can I work 3 hours a day in California? ›

If an employee is scheduled for less than eight hours, then they are entitled to receive half of their daily wages, even if they are sent home early or not permitted to work. You may be wondering: What are the minimum hours to work in a day in California? Legally speaking, there is not a minimum number of hours.

What is the 4-hour minimum pay rule in California? ›

According to California's 4-hour minimum pay rule, also known as the reporting time pay law, if an employee is scheduled to work a shift and reports to work as scheduled, they are entitled to receive compensation for at least half of their scheduled shift or for two hours, whichever is greater.

What is the 4-hour rule in California? ›

Under California's 4-Hour Minimum Pay Rule, employers cannot typically pay employees for less than 2 hours, or more than four hours, at the employee's regular rate of pay. Reporting to work typically means being present at your workplace at the start of your scheduled shift.

What is the law for working hours in California? ›

Ordinarily, the hours to be used in computing the regular rate of pay may not exceed the legal maximum regular hours which, in most cases, is 8 hours per workday, 40 hours per workweek. This maximum may also be affected by the number of days one works in a workweek.

Can you work 4 to 10 hour days in California? ›

These schedules also permit nonexempt employees to work more than eight hours in a day without incurring daily overtime. Common examples of alternative workweek schedules are the 4/10 (employees work four 10-hour days in a workweek) or the 9/80 (employees work 80 hours in nine days over two workweeks).

What is the longest shift you can legally work? ›

Presently, no OSHA standard to regulate extended and unusual shifts in the workplace exists. A work period of eight consecutive hours over five days with at least eight hours of rest in between shifts defines a standard shift. Any shift that goes beyond this standard is considered to be extended or unusual.

Can my employer change my schedule last minute in California? ›

In California, employers are usually allowed to change the schedule of their employees at the last minute, without giving prior notice, so long as the appropriate payment is given. With that said, some cities in California made rules against this, and employers cannot change one's schedule without prior notice.

How many days can you legally work in a row in California? ›

In California, labor laws mandate that employers provide employees with a day of rest during each workweek. Specifically, employees generally cannot work more than six consecutive days in a week.

What is the new overtime law in California? ›

Employees must be paid the local minimum wage if it is higher than the state or federal minimum wage. As a result, the new minimum wage law also raises the overtime rate. The overtime minimum rate in California is now $23.25 an hour for non-exempt employees.

What is the 7 minute rule for payroll in California? ›

The 1-7, 8-14 Rule.

If an employee's time falls between 1-7 minutes, it can be rounded down. However, if it's between 8 and 14 minutes, employers must round it up, counting it as a quarter-hour of work.

How many hours do you have to work to get double time in California? ›

Double the employee's regular rate of pay for all hours worked in excess of 12 hours in any workday and for all hours worked in excess of eight on the seventh consecutive day of work in a workweek.

What is the longest shift you can legally work in California? ›

There is generally no cap on the number of hours you can legally work in a day. But under California labor laws, you as a non-exempt employee are entitled to overtime pay if you work: More than eight (8) hours in a single workday; More than forty (40) hours in a single workweek; or.

Can you pay an employee two different hourly rates California? ›

When an employee works at two different pay rates rather than a fixed rate during a single workweek, employers must calculate the regular rate of pay based on both rates.

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