Wyoming Overtime Law: Daily Overtime, the 40-Hour Rule, and Exemptions

Wyoming does not have its own overtime law, and it does not require daily overtime. There is no Wyoming statute that pays you extra for working more than 8 hours in a single day, and the state has no separate weekly overtime rule of its own. Instead, overtime for Wyoming workers is governed entirely by the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Under the FLSA, a non-exempt employee must be paid one and one-half times their regular rate of pay for all hours worked over 40 in a single workweek. Whether you work four 10-hour days or five 8-hour days, what matters in Wyoming is the weekly total, not the daily total.

The 40-Hour Weekly Rule Is the Only Overtime Trigger in Wyoming

Because Wyoming has no state overtime statute, the federal FLSA standard is the law that protects Wyoming employees. The rule is straightforward: overtime is owed for hours worked beyond 40 in a fixed and recurring seven-day workweek. The workweek does not have to match the calendar week. Your employer can define it to start on any day and at any hour, but once set it must stay consistent.

A few points that frequently trip up Wyoming workers:

• There is no daily overtime. Some states (such as California, Alaska, Nevada, and Colorado) require overtime after 8 or 12 hours in a day. Wyoming does not. A 12-hour shift earns no premium unless it pushes your weekly total over 40 hours.
• Hours are not averaged across two weeks. Each workweek stands alone. Working 30 hours one week and 50 the next still entitles you to 10 hours of overtime for the 50-hour week.
• Weekends and holidays are not automatically overtime. Working Saturday, Sunday, or a holiday is treated like any other hour. Premium pay for those days only happens if your employer voluntarily promises it or your weekly hours exceed 40.

The Overtime Rate: 1.5x Your Regular Rate

The federal overtime rate is one and one-half times your regular rate of pay. The regular rate is not always just your hourly wage. It generally includes nondiscretionary bonuses, shift differentials, commissions, and most production or attendance incentives. If you earn a $600 weekly bonus on top of hourly pay, that bonus is folded into your regular rate before the overtime multiplier is applied, which raises the value of your overtime hours.

Tipped employees and salaried non-exempt employees still get overtime. Being paid a salary does not by itself make you exempt. A salaried worker who does not meet a recognized exemption must still receive overtime for hours over 40, calculated from their effective hourly rate.

Minimum Wage Context in Wyoming

Wyoming's own minimum wage statute lists a figure of $5.15 per hour, which is below the federal floor and therefore does not control for the vast majority of workers. Because the federal FLSA minimum wage of $7.25 per hour is higher, $7.25 is the effective minimum wage for nearly all Wyoming employees as of 2026. Wyoming has not raised its state minimum above the federal level, so the federal rate governs. Because wage figures and any future changes can shift, confirm the current minimum wage with the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services before relying on a specific number.

Who Is Exempt From Overtime in Wyoming

Since Wyoming follows the FLSA, the federal exemptions apply. The most common are the "white collar" exemptions for executive, administrative, and professional employees. To qualify, an employee generally must be paid on a salary basis at or above the federal salary threshold AND perform job duties that meet the legal test for the exemption. A title alone does not make you exempt; the actual duties control.

Common exempt and excluded categories include:

• Executive employees who manage the business or a department, direct at least two full-time employees, and have hiring or firing authority.
• Administrative employees whose primary duties involve office or non-manual work tied to business operations and the exercise of independent judgment on significant matters.
• Professional employees in fields requiring advanced knowledge (such as law, medicine, engineering, or accounting), plus certain creative professionals.
• Outside sales employees who regularly work away from the employer's place of business making sales.
• Certain computer professionals meeting specific salary or hourly thresholds.
• Some agricultural workers and specific transportation roles that have their own FLSA treatment.

Because the federal salary threshold has been the subject of litigation and rulemaking, the exact dollar amount required to qualify for a white-collar exemption can change. If your exempt status depends on hitting a salary threshold, verify the current figure with the U.S. Department of Labor or Wyoming's labor agency rather than assuming last year's number still applies.

The Federal Baseline, So You Can Compare

It helps to see exactly where Wyoming sits relative to federal law:

• Minimum wage: Federal FLSA sets $7.25 per hour. Wyoming's statutory $5.15 is lower and does not apply, so $7.25 governs.
• Overtime: Federal FLSA requires 1.5x pay after 40 hours in a workweek. Wyoming adds nothing beyond this, no daily overtime and no double-time requirement.
• Daily overtime: Federal law has none, and neither does Wyoming.

In short, a Wyoming worker has the same core overtime protections as the federal minimum, with no extra state-level cushion.

How to Recover Unpaid Overtime in Wyoming

If your employer has failed to pay overtime you are owed, you have several avenues:

• Document everything first. Keep your own record of hours worked, pay stubs, schedules, and any messages directing you to work off the clock or skip recording time. The burden is easier to meet when you have contemporaneous notes.
• Raise it internally. Sometimes unpaid overtime is a payroll error. A written request to HR or your manager creates a paper trail and can resolve the issue quickly.
• File a wage claim with the State of Wyoming. The Wyoming Department of Workforce Services, Labor Standards office, handles wage complaints and can investigate unpaid wages under state wage-payment law. This is the state agency to contact for Wyoming-specific help.
• File a complaint with the U.S. Department of Labor. Because overtime is a federal right under the FLSA, the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division investigates overtime violations and can recover back wages on your behalf.
• Consider a private lawsuit. Under the FLSA, employees can sue for unpaid overtime, and successful claims may recover back wages plus an equal amount in liquidated damages, as well as attorney's fees and costs.

Mind the deadline. The FLSA generally allows you to recover unpaid overtime going back two years, extended to three years if the violation was willful. Because waiting can permanently erase part of what you are owed, act promptly rather than letting months pass.

Where to Verify Wyoming's Rules

For state wage-payment questions, complaints, and current figures, contact the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services, Labor Standards division. For overtime and FLSA matters specifically, the U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division is the controlling authority. Because Wyoming has no overtime statute of its own, the federal rules are what protect you, and these agencies are the official sources for confirming current thresholds, rates, and procedures before you act.

Official Wyoming Sources

This page is based on Wyoming employment law. Rules and figures change — verify the current details directly with the official Wyoming sources below. This is general legal information, not legal advice.

• Wyoming Department of Workforce Services — official Wyoming agency.
• File a Claim for Wages - Wyoming DWS Labor Standards
• Wyoming Statutes Title 27 - Labor and Employment

Federal law and local ordinances may also apply. Federal laws like the Fair Labor Standards Act set a national floor, and your city or county may add protections (such as a higher local minimum wage or paid sick leave). Check both alongside Wyoming state law.