Tracking overtime means recording the hours worked each day, applying your province's threshold, deciding whether the hours are paid or banked, and keeping a record of it all.
Updated October 9, 2026, based on Quebec's Act respecting labour standards as of August 12, 2026, the Regulation respecting a registration system or the keeping of a register as of June 1, 2026, and British Columbia's Employment Standards Act as of September 22, 2026.
What do you need to record for each employee?​
In Quebec, the employer keeps a register showing, for each employee and each pay period (section 1 of the Regulation respecting a registration system or the keeping of a register):
- the number of hours of work per day;
- the total hours of work per week;
- the number of overtime hours paid or compensated by time off, with the applicable premium.
The same register also covers the wage rate, gross and net wages, vacation and statutory holidays. It is kept for 3 years (section 2).
Other provinces have their own record-keeping rules. For Ontario, see Employee time records in Ontario.
Record the hours actually worked each day, in addition to the scheduled hours.
How do hours worked become overtime?​
In Quebec, the regular work week is 40 hours (section 52 of the Act respecting labour standards). Each hour above it is paid at the prevailing hourly wage plus 50% (section 55). Annual leave and statutory general holidays with pay count as days of work for this calculation (section 56), but sick days do not.
Example: a program coordinator paid $22 an hour works 9 hours Monday to Thursday, then takes Friday off as a 7-hour vacation day. Her week totals 36 + 7 = 43 hours, so 3 overtime hours, paid at $33 each, or $99. Had she been sick on Friday, her week would have totalled 36 hours, with no overtime.
Elsewhere in Canada, the threshold differs, and some provinces add a daily threshold. In British Columbia, for example, overtime starts after 8 hours a day or 40 hours a week (section 35 of the Employment Standards Act). Our provincial articles cover each set of rules: Quebec, Ontario, British Columbia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and Yukon.
See it with your own rules
Feuille de temps does this calculation on every timesheet, with a daily threshold, a weekly threshold or both, and keeps each employee's overtime bank.
Are the hours paid or banked?​
In Quebec, payment is the rule. The employer may replace it with paid time off at the employee's request, or where a collective agreement provides for it (section 55). The time off then equals the hours worked plus 50%: the 3 hours in the example become 4.5 hours in the bank.
This time off must be taken within 12 months of the overtime, on a date agreed upon with the employer. After that, the hours are paid, and they are also paid if employment ends first.
Record the date each hour enters the bank and the multiplier applied. The 12-month period runs from that date.
How do you keep the record without losing it?​
One timesheet per employee per week, signed by the employee and then approved, provides the register's hours per day and weekly total. Quebec's register asks for the number of overtime hours paid or compensated by time off, with the applicable premium: record how each one was compensated.
These timesheets contain personal information. In Quebec, an organization's policies must govern how that information is kept and destroyed (section 3.2 of the Act respecting the protection of personal information in the private sector). We cover this in Quebec's Law 25 and timesheets.
Sources​
- Act respecting labour standards, LégisQuébec
- Regulation respecting a registration system or the keeping of a register, LégisQuébec
- Act respecting the protection of personal information in the private sector, LégisQuébec
- Employment Standards Act, BC Laws
Feuille de temps​
Feuille de temps is timesheet software built for non-profits. Once we have set up your rules with you, it calculates daily and weekly overtime premiums, keeps each employee's overtime bank and prepares the payroll report.Frequently asked questions
What must an overtime record contain in Quebec?
For each pay period: hours of work per day, total hours per week, and the number of overtime hours paid or compensated by time off, with the applicable premium. The register also covers vacation, statutory holidays and wages.
How long must the record of hours be kept in Quebec?
Three years for the register covering a given year (section 2 of the Regulation respecting a registration system or the keeping of a register).
Does vacation count toward overtime in Quebec?
Yes. Annual leave and statutory general holidays with pay count as days of work for this calculation (section 56 of the Act respecting labour standards).
How many hours go into the bank for one overtime hour in Quebec?
One and a half. Time off that replaces payment equals the hours worked plus 50%, and it must be taken within 12 months, or the hours are paid.
Is the overtime threshold the same across Canada?
No. Each province sets its own. In Quebec, it is 40 hours a week; in British Columbia, 8 hours a day or 40 hours a week.