Encoded rule v1.2.0 · rule data last verified 2026-07-31 · official source pages checked 2026-07-30
Answer first
The general Alberta review
Alberta uses the 8/44 rule for most covered employees: calculate overtime above eight hours in a day and above 44 hours in a week, then use whichever total produces more overtime hours. The usual overtime rate is 1.5 times the employee’s wage. Break requirements depend on shift length, beginning with one 30-minute break for a shift longer than five hours but shorter than 10 hours.
General holiday eligibility is not a simple 30-calendar-day tenure test. Alberta says an employee must have worked for the same employer for at least 30 workdays in the 12 months before the holiday. Holiday treatment also depends on whether the holiday is a regular workday, including the 5-of-9 test for variable schedules.
Alberta Employment Standards does not set one universal weekly-hour definition that makes every employee full-time. An employer may define full-time status for its job, benefits, or policy, while separate employment-standard rules govern hours, rest, and overtime. For most covered employees, Alberta limits work to 12 hours a day unless an exception applies and uses the 8/44 overtime rule. Check the employment agreement and any program-specific definition instead of treating 40 or 44 hours as a universal full-time test.
These calculations follow our best reading of each province’s Employment Standards Act, but rules vary by employee classification, collective agreement, industry-specific exemptions, and edge cases we cannot detect. Treat the values as estimates only and confirm with a payroll professional or accountant before processing pay.
Assume a covered hourly cook earns $20 and works 10 hours on Monday plus nine hours on each of four other days, for 46 hours total.
1
Daily overtime total: 2 hours on Monday + 1 hour on each of four days = 6 hours
2
Weekly overtime total: 46 − 44 = 2 hours
3
Use the greater total: 6 overtime hours
4
Worked-hour wages: 40 × $20 + 6 × $30 = $980
Illustrative wages for worked hours: $980.
This example assumes the general 8/44 rule and no overtime agreement or industry exception. Confirm the employee’s coverage and the written work-week record.
Assume the employee earned $4,000 over 20 days worked in the selected four-week lookback and the holiday falls on a regular day of work.
1
Average daily wage: $4,000 ÷ 20 days = $200
2
If the employee works 8 hours at $25 under the premium option: 8 × $25 × 1.5 + $200 = $500
Illustrative premium-option total: $500.
The employer may instead use the future-day-off option described by Alberta. First verify 30 workdays in the prior 12 months, the regular-workday test, authorized absences, and the selected four-week calculation window.
A bartender is scheduled from 4:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m.
A shift longer than five but shorter than 10 hours needs at least one 30-minute break. By agreement, that break may be split into two periods of at least 15 minutes.
The break must be paid if the employer restricts the employee during it, including requiring the employee to remain on the premises.
Because Alberta compares daily and weekly overtime, document which workday owns an overnight block. The current scheduler cannot store a continuous cross-midnight shift exactly; keep an external overnight record or reconcile a midnight split before applying the 8/44 comparison.
Alberta restaurant scheduling scenario
A Calgary restaurant schedules a cook for five dinner services, then extends each close as demand rises. A 46-hour total does not tell the whole story: the daily calculation produces six overtime hours while the weekly calculation produces two. The manager should keep the larger result, verify the break on each long shift, and separately review general-holiday eligibility and treatment.
Why some calculations always need review
We use current shift data × current hourly wage as the lookback wages. Vacation pay, paid sick leave, and historical wage changes are not yet tracked — this can shift the stat-pay number slightly.
The province conditions some holiday pay outcomes on whether the holiday is a regular work day or normal work pattern. Current schedule data cannot prove that automatically, so review is required.
Official sources and checked date
We opened the three government pages below on 2026-07-30. That is the content check for this guide; it does not change the encoded payroll rule version or its verification date.
When the estimate engine is enabled in a free account and a Alberta payroll week contains a paid statutory holiday, Maxuod Shift separates worked-holiday days, non-worked eligible holidays, and regular days. It shows an estimated adjustment against the regular payroll amount already entered. Nothing is added to gross pay until the manager confirms the review.
The product provides estimates, source links, and review prompts. It does not decide employee coverage, approve an overtime agreement, confirm an absence, or replace payroll, accounting, or legal advice.
