Working Hours and Overtime in Puerto Rico

What Are The Standard Working Hours In Puerto Rico?

An employee whose age is 17 or younger has a maximum of 8 hours per day and 40 hours per week. An employee whose age is 18 or older is allowed to work 40 hours per week. A minimum meal interval of 60 minutes must be observed by employees who work more than 5 consecutive hours in a day. In typical working hours, Monday through Friday, the hours are 8:00 to 17:00.

Maximum Working Hours In Puerto Rico

In Puerto Rico, the statutory regular working day for adult employees is 8 hours and the regular working week is 40 hours. Any work beyond 8 hours in a calendar day or beyond 40 hours in a week is treated as overtime and must be compensated at premium rates. You must structure schedules so that regular hours do not routinely exceed these thresholds without proper overtime pay.

Collective bargaining agreements or individual contracts may set shorter regular hours, such as 37.5 or 35 hours per week, but they cannot lawfully increase the statutory 8-hour daily or 40-hour weekly regular limits. When you adopt alternative schedules, such as compressed workweeks, you must ensure they comply with Puerto Rico’s Working Hours and Days Act and any applicable wage orders. You are also required to keep accurate daily and weekly time records to demonstrate compliance with these maximums.

Industry-Specific Exceptions

Companies hiring in sectors like healthcare, transportation, manufacturing, or hospitality may be subject to special scheduling rules under local statutes and federal regulations. Healthcare facilities often rely on 10- or 12-hour shifts, but you must still treat hours beyond 8 in a day or 40 in a week as overtime for non-exempt staff and pay the applicable premium. Transportation employers must also comply with U.S. Department of Transportation hours-of-service rules where applicable, in addition to Puerto Rico’s daily and weekly limits.

Manufacturing, security, and hospitality operations frequently use rotating shifts that cover nights, weekends, and holidays. You must design these rotations so that employees still receive required daily and weekly rest and that overtime is correctly tracked and paid at the statutory rates. Even in these sectors, you must ensure the average weekly limit is respected over a reasonable reference period consistent with Puerto Rico law.

• Healthcare professionals may work 12-hour shifts with extended rest periods.
• Transport workers must comply with EU-aligned rest and driving limits.
• Manufacturing and security staff often rotate through night or weekend shifts.

Even in these sectors, you must ensure the average weekly limit is respected over a reference period. You should also confirm that any sector-specific regulations or wage orders do not impose stricter limits or additional protections for your workforce.

Managerial And Exempt Employees

Certain executive, administrative, and professional employees who meet both duties and salary tests under Puerto Rico law and the U.S. Fair Labor Standards Act may be classified as exempt from overtime. Exempt managerial employees are not subject to the 8-hour daily and 40-hour weekly overtime triggers, but you must clearly document their exempt status and core responsibilities in their contracts. Misclassification of non-exempt staff as exempt can expose you to back pay claims, penalties, and interest.

Even for exempt managers, you should avoid excessive working hours that could raise health, safety, or discrimination concerns. Employment contracts and internal policies should describe expected working hours, availability outside normal hours, and any additional allowances or bonuses for extended schedules. Regularly review exempt roles to ensure they still meet the legal criteria as job duties evolve.

Statutory Full-Time Working Hours In Puerto Rico

In Puerto Rico, full-time work is generally understood as 8 hours per day and 40 hours per week for non-exempt employees. Many benefits and entitlements, such as vacation accrual and certain leave rights, are structured around this 40-hour full-time benchmark. Part-time employees working fewer hours must still receive overtime pay if they exceed 8 hours in a day.

Collective agreements or company policies may define full-time status at slightly different weekly hours, such as 37.5 hours, provided they do not undermine statutory protections. You may also implement flexible or staggered schedules, but you must always ensure that any hours beyond the statutory daily or weekly thresholds are compensated at the required overtime rates. Clear written policies help employees understand when they are considered full-time and how schedule changes affect their pay.

Overtime Regulations In Puerto Rico

As an employer in Puerto Rico, you must track all hours worked each day and week to identify when employees cross the 8-hour daily or 40-hour weekly thresholds that trigger overtime. You are required to maintain accurate time and payroll records that show regular hours, overtime hours, and the corresponding premium rates paid. Failure to comply with overtime rules can result in double damages, administrative fines, and litigation costs.

What Counts As Overtime In Puerto Rico?

For non-exempt employees in Puerto Rico, any work performed beyond 8 hours in a calendar day is overtime and must be paid at a premium rate. Work performed beyond 40 hours in a workweek is also overtime, even if no single day exceeds 8 hours. In addition, work performed on an employee’s statutory rest day or on a recognized public holiday is treated as overtime and must be compensated at the applicable premium rate.

Hours worked before the scheduled start time or after the scheduled end time count as working time if you know or should know the work is being performed. You must also count certain on-call time, mandatory training, and job-related travel as hours worked when determining overtime. To reduce disputes, you should implement clear policies requiring prior authorization for overtime while still paying for all overtime actually worked.

Maximum Overtime In Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico law does not set a fixed numerical weekly or annual cap on overtime hours for adult non-exempt employees, so the formal limit is effectively “No statutory overtime cap.” However, you must still respect health and safety principles and avoid schedules that are unreasonably excessive, such as routinely exceeding 12 to 14 hours per day. In practice, many employers limit overtime to no more than 16 hours per week per employee to manage fatigue and cost.

Employees may not be forced to work overtime in a manner that violates their right to a weekly day of rest, and you must provide at least 24 consecutive hours of rest after 6 consecutive working days. If operational needs require extended overtime, you should document the business justification and obtain written consent from employees where feasible. For minors under 18, overtime is effectively capped at 0 hours because they may not work beyond 8 hours per day or 40 hours per week.

Overtime Payout Rates In Puerto Rico

Under Puerto Rico law, overtime must generally be paid at a rate of at least 1.5x the employee’s regular hourly rate for hours worked in excess of 8 per day or 40 per week. Work performed on the employee’s designated rest day or on a statutory public holiday must be paid at a minimum of 2.0x the regular hourly rate. If a collective bargaining agreement or company policy provides a higher premium, such as 1.75x for daily overtime or 2.5x for holidays, you must honor the more favorable rate.

When calculating the regular rate for overtime purposes, you must include non-discretionary bonuses, shift differentials, and certain commissions in addition to the base hourly wage. For example, if an employee’s regular rate including differentials is $10 per hour, daily or weekly overtime must be paid at least $15 per hour (1.5x), and work on a statutory holiday or rest day must be paid at least $20 per hour (2.0x). You should clearly itemize overtime hours and rates on pay slips so employees can verify that the correct numerical multipliers have been applied.

Rest Periods And Breaks In Puerto Rico

In Puerto Rico, most employees work standard schedules of around 8 hours per day and 40 hours per week, and rest periods are designed around these limits to protect health and productivity. Employees who work more than 5 consecutive hours in a day must receive a meal break, and daily and weekly rest rules ensure recovery between shifts. As an employer, you must integrate these breaks into your scheduling practices so that they occur within the legal time frames and are properly documented.

• Meal Break: Employees who work more than 5 consecutive hours must receive a meal break of at least 60 minutes, which should generally begin between the end of the second and the start of the sixth consecutive hour of work.
• Daily Rest: You should schedule at least 11 consecutive hours of rest between the end of one workday and the start of the next, especially when employees approach the 8-hour daily limit or perform overtime.
• Weekly Rest: Employees are entitled to at least 24 consecutive hours of rest after no more than 6 consecutive working days, and Sunday is commonly used as the weekly rest day in Puerto Rico.
• Minors: Workers under 18 may not work more than 8 hours per day or 40 hours per week and must receive meal and rest breaks that are at least as protective as those for adults, with stricter limits often applied in practice.
• Employer Duty: You are responsible for scheduling, recording, and enforcing rest and meal breaks, and you may face penalties if employees are pressured to skip or shorten legally required breaks.

Night Shifts And Weekend Regulations In Puerto Rico

Night and weekend work are legal in Puerto Rico, but they come with additional responsibilities for employers and specific protections for employees. You must ensure that schedules, pay practices, and health and safety measures reflect the heightened risks associated with work performed at night or on rest days. Proper planning and documentation are essential to remain compliant and to avoid fatigue-related incidents.

Night work in Puerto Rico is generally understood as work performed between 22:00 and 6:00, although collective agreements may define a slightly different window. This definition applies across most roles, including manufacturing, healthcare, hospitality, and security, unless a specific statute or wage order sets a narrower or broader period. You should clearly designate which hours in your operation are treated as night hours and communicate this to employees in writing.

• Premium Pay: Puerto Rico law does not mandate a specific statutory night work premium, so there is no fixed percentage such as 25% or 1.25x required solely for night hours; however, many employers voluntarily pay a night differential of 10%–25% above the regular rate to attract staff and compensate for the inconvenience of night work.
• Health Monitoring: While there is no universal statutory requirement for periodic medical exams for night workers, you are strongly encouraged to offer health assessments and fatigue management programs for employees who regularly work between 22:00 and 6:00.
• Workplace Restrictions: Minors under 18 are generally prohibited from working late-night hours and from performing hazardous night work, and pregnant workers may be entitled to schedule adjustments or removal from night shifts as a reasonable accommodation under health and anti-discrimination laws.

Weekend work, including Sunday work, is permitted in Puerto Rico, but employees must still receive at least 24 consecutive hours of weekly rest after no more than 6 consecutive working days. When weekend work coincides with a statutory rest day or public holiday, non-exempt employees must be paid at least 2.0x their regular hourly rate for those hours, in addition to any applicable overtime premium for exceeding 8 hours per day or 40 hours per week.