# Overtime



## Robillard (Apr 11, 2009)

Assuming that you actually get paid overtime, what is the most overtime you have had to put in in a day or month. Have you ever picked up extra overtime in order to make ends meet, or to save up for something? Are you ever forced to work overtime for no extra pay (a practice that is illegal, but that some employers get away with). 

I have had to put in a 14-hour day on occasion (6 hours of overtime). Back in March of this year, I put in 28 extra hours of overtime. I used the money to help pay off my student loan in April. On the whole, I don't mind working overtime that much because I get paid fairly well for it, and because I'm still young and stupid. My employer got in legal trouble for not paying some people overtime, so now it follows the provincial laws more or less by the book.


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## stephenheath (Apr 3, 2009)

Only once, when I was a young kid too, did I help out an employer with a 24 hour shift... I did my shift, the person on the next shift didn't show and the owner asked if I'd be willing to work a double since the only other person who could cover was the owner himself, so I agreed... it's just a gas station job so wasn't hard or tiring... but when the person for the third shift quit without notice there was noone and the owner, who owned another business, was stuck covering at his other business. I was scheduled for what would have been the fourth shift, but he said he could come cover that if I could do this third in a row. That third shift took a few jolt colas to finish, but I did it... there's no way I could ever do it now as an old fart, I need my 8 hours of sleep


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## Ben (Apr 3, 2009)

About 6 months out of school, I was working for a contractor on a shutdown in Come-by-Chance, NF. 

I put in something like 25 days straight, 12-hours/day. This was 168 hours over one 14-day pay period. The first 80 hours at straight time, the next 88 at 1.5x, for a total of 212 equivalent straight time hours in 2 weeks. It was, and still is, the biggest paycheque of my life. While I lived in Come-by-Chance, I boarded with a young couple for $50/week, meals included. I felt like a bandit, but that was the going rate in town for boarders.

That stint, and others like it, are a big reason why I was able to pay off my student loans in less than a year. Combined with a frugal lifestyle, of course...


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## furgy (Apr 20, 2009)

I worked for a major gold mine in northern bc for about a year and a half.

It was a fly-in only camp , we worked four weeks in and then two off.

I worked sixteen hours a day as a heavy duty mechanic , if they were short of mechanics I would forfeit my two weeks off and stay in for ten weeks at a time.

There really was nothing else to do there if not working , I figured working doubles was better than sitting in a bunkhouse drinking with the rest of the guys.

Near the end of my time there they cut the hours back to eight hours a day , that was when I quit , to me it just wasn't worth it being in camp anymore.

They paid us straight time for the first forty hours of every week , time and a half for the next twenty and double time for the remaider of the week.

It was a good camp and they fed us very well , camp was free as were flights in and out of Vancouver as well as motel rooms and meals while travelling.

I paid off all my debts that year including my mortgage , my tax return for the first year was $14,000 (I have a very good book keeper).

It was exhausting and being away from home and family was not fun , financially it was worth it.

Would I do it again? , No.


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## Alexandra (Apr 3, 2009)

I used to work overtime all the time - every chance I could get, really. While in high school and university I worked at the local A&P, and would be the go-to person if anyone called in sick. I lived really close to the store and would be there, in uniform, about ten minutes after the phone call. They were unionized and were supposed to do it by the book - calling each person by seniority until they got to the bottom of the seniority list (where I was), but they knew from experience that no one else ever wanted to come in on short notice. Time and a half is really appealling to a high school student.

I also use to volunteer for any Sunday shift I could, as back then Sundays were also paid at time and a half (they were not really "legal" workdays until a few years after I started working). I used to double up on my Sunday shifts - working a very early morning shift in produce doing all the price changes and chalkboard signs, and then switching over to do a second shift on cash.

Money was a big motivator for me back then - my parents gave us no allowance, and earning money was the only way I could buy clothes, food and other stuff to hang out with my friends.

Now, time and a half wouldn't motivate me to leave my family at home and come into work. Maybe triple time...


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## CanadianCapitalist (Mar 31, 2009)

I've actually never worked overtime that I got paid for. Since I develop software for a living, when there is a lot of work, I put in a lot of overtime and take time off when work is slack. I've worked with four or five companies so far and it hasn't been a problem.


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## Rickson9 (Apr 9, 2009)

I work 20 hours a week. No overtime pay for me.


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## Maltese (Apr 22, 2009)

I typically work 2 hours of extra time a day and don't get paid for it. Neither am I allowed to bank the time. This is typical in my office and my boss seems to be oblivious of all the extra time people put in to get all the work accomplished. She's gone at 4 PM and doesn't see what goes on after hours.


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## habsfan93 (May 29, 2009)

I work overtime when the project requires it - the most I've ever worked with my current employer is a 70 hour week. I can bank all my time or have it paid out - I usually end up banking it and doubling or tripling my vacation time for the year.


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## canehdianman (Apr 7, 2009)

several professions are exempt from employment standards regarding overtime. Law being one of them.

I work what would surely be a lot of overtime, but never get paid specifically for it.

However, I do get a nice bonus every year based on my billable hours.


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## cwrea (Jul 2, 2009)

I do software development on a contract basis, and I bill for every hour I work for a client. Typically, I don't do over time, but I did work on a client project a little while back that required some extra time due to unrealistic scheduling. I didn't need the money, but the project definitely needed the extra hours, and I wasn't feeling very charitable  The extra money was split between additional savings, and a home renovation project. I don't think I would want to do it often, though -- my wife complained for the first time in a long time that I was working too much!


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## samorchard (Jul 3, 2009)

I don't mind working overtime but I don't get paid for it and when it became a problem I just stopped doing it as it became an assumption that I would always do it. I decided that I could go home and make money for myself instead, so I started to make money online with affiliate programs and paid surveys and now I make a descent income from it.


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## Andrew (May 22, 2009)

I technically work overtime nearly everyday since I arrive about 45 mins - 30 mins before our regular start time. I often stay later then necessary too. When I work 3-4 hours beyond regular hours I will book overtime and get paid for it otherwise it balances out with time wasted browsing the internet during the day. My employer and my manager in particular are good with the give/take relationship when it comes to work hours and overtime.


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