A few hours of overtime a week feels harmless — until you price it at time-and-a-half and double time across a year. See what it really costs, and when hiring wins.
traqR timesheets capture normal and overtime hours per job automatically — so you can see which jobs and customers are actually driving the overtime bill.
Start free trialAwards typically pay the first 2–3 overtime hours at time-and-a-half (150%) and everything after at double time (200%). The split drives the cost.
Each block of hours is costed at its penalty rate, then compared with what the same hours would cost at the ordinary rate.
A “harmless” few hours a week compounds — the annual premium is often the clearest signal of whether it’s time to put on another tradie.
Under most trade awards, ordinary hours are 38 per week (plus any agreed averaging), worked within a daily span. Hours beyond that — or outside the span, or on weekends — attract overtime or penalty rates. The exact triggers vary by award, so check the one that covers your team.
Generally no. The super guarantee applies to ordinary time earnings, and genuine overtime payments are excluded — which slightly softens the true cost compared with ordinary hours. If “overtime” is really just a rolled-in part of regular hours, it may count as OTE, so treat edge cases carefully.
Occasional overtime is almost always cheaper — a new employee brings on-costs, gear, a vehicle seat and downtime. But if the annual premium in this calculator starts approaching the cost of extra part-time or full-time hours, and the workload is steady, hiring usually wins — and a tired crew doing constant overtime costs you in rework and safety too.
No — 150%/200% is the common pattern in trade awards for Monday–Saturday overtime, but Sundays, public holidays, shift work and casuals have different loadings, and enterprise agreements override awards. Use the multiplier split from your specific award or agreement.
This calculator is a general guide, not payroll or legal advice. Overtime triggers, penalty rates and averaging rules depend on the applicable modern award or enterprise agreement, and casual loadings and allowances are not modelled. Check the relevant Fair Work award before setting pay.
traqR timesheets capture hours per job, so you know exactly which work is driving the overtime bill. Try it free for 14 days.