Title 5Government Organization and EmployeesRelease 119-73

§6128 Compressed schedules; computation of premium pay

Title 5 › Part PART III— - EMPLOYEES › Subpart Subpart E— - Attendance and Leave › Chapter CHAPTER 61— - HOURS OF WORK › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER II— - FLEXIBLE AND COMPRESSED WORK SCHEDULES › § 6128

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

Sets rules for overtime and extra pay for employees on compressed work schedules. The normal overtime laws named in statute do not treat the regular hours that make up a compressed schedule as overtime. For a full‑time worker, any hours beyond the compressed schedule are overtime and must be paid under the usual overtime rules named earlier. For a part‑time worker on a compressed schedule, overtime starts after the same number of hours that would trigger overtime for a similar full‑time worker. If a full‑time compressed‑schedule worker has a shift that includes any Sunday, the whole shift is paid at the worker’s regular pay plus an extra 25% of that pay. If the worker works on a federal holiday, they are paid their regular pay plus an equal amount (double pay) for hours up to their basic work requirement for that day. Any hours over that basic requirement on the holiday are paid as overtime under whichever law (the named overtime rules or the Fair Labor Standards Act) gives the worker the better pay.

Full Legal Text

Title 5, §6128

Government Organization and Employees — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)The provisions of section 5542(a) and 5544(a) of this title, section 7453(e) of title 38, section 7 of the Fair Labor Standards Act (29 U.S.C. 207), or any other law, which relate to premium pay for overtime work, shall not apply to the hours which constitute a compressed schedule.
(b)In the case of any full-time employee, hours worked in excess of the compressed schedule shall be overtime hours and shall be paid for as provided by the applicable provisions referred to in subsection (a) of this section. In the case of any part-time employee on a compressed schedule, overtime pay shall begin to be paid after the same number of hours of work after which a full-time employee on a similar schedule would begin to receive overtime pay.
(c)Notwithstanding section 5544(a) or 5546(a) of this title, or any other applicable provision of law, in the case of any full-time employee on a compressed schedule who performs work (other than overtime work) on a tour of duty for any workday a part of which is performed on a Sunday, such employee is entitled to pay for work performed during the entire tour of duty at the rate of such employee’s basic pay, plus premium pay at a rate equal to 25 percent of such basic pay rate.
(d)Notwithstanding section 5546(b) of this title, an employee on a compressed schedule who performs work on a holiday designated by Federal statute or Executive order is entitled to pay at the rate of such employee’s basic pay, plus premium pay at a rate equal to such basic pay rate, for such work which is not in excess of the basic work requirement of such employee for such day. For hours worked on such a holiday in excess of the basic work requirement for such day, the employee is entitled to premium pay in accordance with the provisions of section 5542(a) or 5544(a) of this title, as applicable, or the provisions of section 7 of the Fair Labor Standards Act (29 U.S.C. 207) whichever provisions are more beneficial to the employee.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

1992—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 102–378, § 2(44)(E)(i), substituted “5542(a) and 5544(a)” for “5542(a), 5544(a), and 5550(2)”. Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 102–378, § 2(44)(E)(ii), substituted “5544(a) or 5546(a)” for “5544(a), 5546(a), or 5550(1)”. 1991—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 102–40 substituted “section 7453(e)” for “section 4107(e)(5)”.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

5 U.S.C. § 6128

Title 5Government Organization and Employees

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73