United States · Fair Labor Standards Act § 7(k) · PUBLIC AGENCY ONLY
Fire is 212 in 28. Police is 171. Private security is not this page.
29 U.S.C. § 207(k) is a public-agency rule. A State or political subdivision may pay fire protection and law enforcement employees overtime on a work period of 7 to 28 consecutive days instead of the 40-hour week. 29 CFR § 553.230 publishes the maximum hours for each length (rounded to the nearest whole hour): fire 212 / 28 (106 / 14, 53 / 7); law enforcement 171 / 28 (86 / 14). WHD Fact Sheet #8 (revised March 2011) is the same table in prose. Hours above that maximum are 1.5×. Not private security. Not hospital 8/80.
The 553.230 table, not a 40-hour week
Load a firefighter with 213 hours in a 28-day work period at $20. The first 212 hours stay regular. The 213th hour is overtime. Load law enforcement 172 hours in 28 days: 171 regular + 1 overtime. Load a 14-day fire period with 107 hours: 106 regular + 1 overtime (Fact Sheet #8's 106 / 14 example). Change the work-period length and the punch grid resizes; the cap is the table row, not a recomputed ratio.
Section 13(b)(20) (public agency with fewer than five employees in fire or law enforcement that workweek) and the 480-hour compensatory-time option are labeled out of scope. Sleep and meal on 24-hour tours belong on the 8/80 sleep card (29 CFR 785.22), not here.
In scope
- Public-agency fire and law enforcement only
- Work period 7–28 days; 553.230(c) max hours table
- 1.5× above that maximum from punches
Out of scope
- Private security
- Hospital 8/80 (§ 207(j))
- Compensatory time; § 13(b)(20) small-agency exemption
- Sleep/meal tour exclusions (785.22)
FAQ
Who can use the FLSA 7(k) work period?
PUBLIC AGENCY ONLY. Fact Sheet #8 and FLSA § 3(s)(1)(C): law enforcement and fire protection employees of a State, a political subdivision of a State, or an interstate governmental agency. Not private security. Section 7(k) lets the agency pay overtime on a work period of 7 to 28 consecutive days instead of the 40-hour workweek.
What are the maximum hours before overtime?
29 CFR § 553.230(c) (eCFR current through 26 August 2026): fire protection 212 hours in 28 days, 106 in 14, 53 in 7, and the rest of the table rounded to the nearest whole hour. Law enforcement 171 in 28 days, 86 in 14, 43 in 7. Fact Sheet #8 uses the same 106/14 fire and 86/14 police examples. This page pays 1.5× the typed regular rate for hours above that maximum.
Is this the hospital 8/80 system?
No. Hospital and residential-care 8/80 is 29 U.S.C. § 207(j) / 29 CFR 778.601 on /flsa-8-80/. 7(k) is public fire and police. There is no daily-8 inside the 7(k) table on this page.
Does this compute compensatory time?
No. Fact Sheet #8 notes that a public agency may give compensatory time at not less than 1.5 hours per overtime hour, up to 480 hours for police and fire, instead of cash. That election and the § 13(b)(20) fewer-than-five-employees exemption are out of scope. Sleep and meal exclusions on tours overlap 29 CFR 785.22 and are on the 8/80 sleep card, not here.
