Your pay and hours
Use your basic monthly salary, without allowances, overtime or bonus.
Who gets overtime pay
Overtime pay under the Employment Act covers non-workmen earning up to S$2,600 a month and workmen earning up to S$4,500. Above those caps, overtime depends on your contract.
- Non-workmen are most office, retail and service staff who are not managers or executives. Their overtime rate is capped at the S$2,600 salary level, an hourly rate of S$13.60.
- Workmen do manual work: cleaners, construction workers, machine operators, drivers.
- Managers and executives are not covered for overtime, whatever they earn.
How overtime is worked out
Hourly basic rate = 12 × monthly basic salary ÷ (52 × 44). Overtime is paid at 1.5 times that rate.
- Normal hours: up to 9 hours a day or 44 hours a week for a 5-day week. Work beyond that is overtime.
- Limit: at most 72 overtime hours a month, unless MOM grants an exemption.
- Payment: within 14 days after the end of the salary period.
Pay for working on a rest day
If your employer asks you to work a rest day, you get 1 day's pay for up to half a day's work and 2 days' pay for more. If you ask to work, it is half a day's and 1 day's pay.
| Hours worked on the rest day | Employer asked | You asked |
|---|---|---|
| Up to half your normal daily hours | 1 day's salary | Half a day's salary |
| More than half, up to normal daily hours | 2 days' salary | 1 day's salary |
| Beyond normal daily hours | 2 days' salary plus overtime | 1 day's salary plus overtime |
Common questions
How is overtime pay calculated in Singapore?
Take 12 times your monthly basic salary, divide by 52 weeks and 44 hours to get the hourly basic rate, then multiply by 1.5 for each overtime hour. Non-workmen earning above S$2,600 use a capped hourly rate of S$13.60.
I earn S$3,000 in an office job. Do I get overtime?
Not under the Employment Act, because you are a non-workman above S$2,600. Your contract or company policy may still pay it. The calculator shows the formula result anyway so you can compare.
Do allowances count in the basic rate?
No. The hourly basic rate uses basic salary only. Overtime on allowances is a matter for your contract.
What about public holidays?
Working on a public holiday earns an extra day's basic salary or a day off in lieu, under separate rules on MOM's public holiday pay page.
Sources
Ministry of Manpower
- MOM, Hours of work, overtime and rest days: eligibility, formula, 72-hour limit, rest day pay. Checked 17 October 2026.