Recently we've received orders from companies working 4 ten hour shifts per week (4x10). We've appreciated the orders, because for our assignment employees who can manage the longer workdays, the 3 day weekend is very appealing.

Because 4x10 schedules are an exception for us, we encountered a situation we hadn't thought about before.  If you're working a 4 x 10 schedule or thinking about going to a 4 x 10, what we learned could be very useful to you as well.

The consensus of our professional advisors is, in general, whenever an employee works more than 8 hours in any shift they are entitled to overtime pay unless they work the full 40 hours of the 4 x 10.

So, if you are working a 4 x 10 and you bring a temp in for three days, each hour after the first 8 hour in a shift is time and a half.  In the case of a three day temp, the employee would earn 24 hours straight time and 6 hours of overtime.

We discovered this fine point for some of our clients, and it is vital information if you are or considering going on 4 x 10s and bringing in temps on ten hour shifts. There are exceptions and we're not attempting to offer legal advice, but we do want you to be aware that there are circumstances that you might not have considered that may require a closer look.

Most of our service agreements provide for a fee in the event that we place someone with you that you decide will be an asset to your company. Typically we discount the fee over the time they work for your as our temp. Usually the discount will bottom out after about 3 months of workdays (521 hours).

It's an often misunderstood provision that works as insurance for us. Like you, we need revenue to stay in business and our pricing like yours', is a reflection of our costs.

One of the costs that can haunt us 

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