Tennessee has no overtime law of its own and no state minimum wage law, so federal FLSA rules decide your pay. Enter your rate and hours for an accurate Tennessee paycheck estimate: 1.5x after 40 hours a week, no daily overtime.
Rules verified November 2026 · Sources: U.S. Department of Labor
By Mudassir Khan
Federal FLSA rules only. Each workweek stands alone.
Unpaid overtime goes to the U.S. DOL Wage and Hour Division, within 2 years. Estimates only. Not tax, legal, or payroll advice. Confirm with your employer or a qualified professional.
Tennessee has no state overtime law, so the federal FLSA applies: nonexempt workers earn 1.5 times their regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek, with no daily overtime. The minimum wage is the $7.25 federal floor. Tennessee also has no state income tax, so overtime keeps more of its value here.
Tennessee never passed a minimum wage or overtime statute, so the Fair Labor Standards Act applies directly: nonexempt employees earn at least 1.5 times the regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek. There is no state rule that could beat it.
The Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development handles state wage regulations like pay timing, but overtime is a federal matter. Unpaid overtime complaints go to the Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor, with 2 years to file, or 3 if the violation was willful.
Tennessee is one of the few states with no tax on wage income at all, so overtime pay faces only federal income tax plus Social Security and Medicare. Your 1.5x premium keeps more of its value than in almost any other state.
Gross = (40 × rate) + (hours over 40 × rate × 1.5)
| Rule | Tennessee |
|---|---|
| Overtime rule | Federal FLSA only: 1.5 times pay after 40 hours in a workweek |
| Minimum wage 2026 | $7.25 (federal floor; no state law) |
| State income tax | None |
| Claim agency | No state overtime agency; U.S. DOL Wage and Hour Division or court |
| Claim deadline | 2 years under the FLSA, 3 years if the violation was willful |
| Worker | Math | Gross |
|---|---|---|
| $7.25/hr, 48 hours | $290 + 8 × $10.88 | $377.00 |
| $14/hr, 50 hours | $560 + 10 × $21 | $770.00 |
| $22/hr, 44 hours | $880 + 4 × $33 | $1,012.00 |
| $10/hr, 40 hours | 40 × $10, no overtime | $400.00 |
Example 1 shows the no tax advantage: the $87 overtime premium faces only federal tax, not a state cut. In a high tax state the same hours would lose more to state tax before they ever reach your bank account.
Tennessee regulates when you are paid, not how much. State law requires wages at least twice a month, and final pay by the end of the pay cycle after you leave. But the rate and the overtime premium are purely federal questions.
The averaging trap. An employer cannot average your hours across two weeks to dodge overtime. A 32 hour week followed by a 48 hour week still earns 8 overtime hours, because each workweek stands alone under the FLSA.
Comp time is illegal in the private sector. A private Tennessee employer cannot hand you time off later instead of paying overtime now. If you worked the overtime hours, the paycheck must carry the 1.5x premium.
Like Tennessee, Georgia runs on federal overtime law alone: our Georgia overtime calculator shows the same math in a neighboring state. The federal baseline is explained in the FLSA overtime rules guide.
No. Tennessee has no state overtime statute and no state minimum wage law, so the federal Fair Labor Standards Act decides everything: 1.5 times the regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek.
With the Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor, or in court. Tennessee's state labor department does not enforce overtime. The FLSA deadline is 2 years, or 3 for willful violations.
$7.25 an hour, the federal floor. Tennessee has no state minimum wage law.
No. Only hours over 40 in a workweek earn 1.5 times the regular rate.
No. Tennessee has no state income tax on wages, so overtime faces only federal income tax plus Social Security and Medicare taxes.
Yes, if nonexempt. A salary alone does not remove overtime rights. Only employees who pass the FLSA exempt duties and salary tests can be denied overtime pay.
Rates and rules checked against these sources in November 2026.
Want the same math without the Tennessee framing? Use the overtime pay calculator. With no state income tax, the federal no tax on overtime deduction goes further here: try the deduction calculator.