Encoded rule v1.1.0 · rule data last verified 2026-07-06 · official source pages checked 2026-07-30
Answer first
The general Nova Scotia review
Nova Scotia’s general overtime rule is 1.5 times the regular wage after 48 hours in a consistent seven-day week. Some occupations use different thresholds or rate bases. Employees are entitled to an unbroken 30-minute break so they do not work more than five consecutive hours without one, with additional break time on shifts longer than 10 hours.
A Nova Scotia employee generally qualifies for a paid holiday by being entitled to pay for at least 15 of the 30 calendar days before the holiday and working the last scheduled shift before and first scheduled shift after it. This is not the same as working 15 days. Authorized scheduling decisions and listed exceptions can change the review.
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 line cook works 52 hours in the restaurant’s consistent seven-day work week and is subject to the general rule.
1
Regular wages: 48 × $18 = $864
2
Overtime wages: 4 × ($18 × 1.5) = $108
Illustrative wages for worked hours: $972.
Managers, supervisors, some professionals, transport workers, construction and property-maintenance workers, and other listed groups can follow special rules. Confirm the employee category before using 48 hours at the regular rate.
A dining-room closer is scheduled from 4:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m.
Provide an unbroken 30-minute break before the employee works more than five consecutive hours. A 12-hour shift needs the first full half-hour plus at least 30 additional minutes, which may be split.
Nova Scotia says a break will likely count as work when the employee must remain at the job site, under the employer’s control, and available to work. Confirm what actually happened before deducting time.
Nova Scotia measures the general threshold in a consistent seven-day week. The current scheduler cannot store one continuous cross-midnight shift exactly, so preserve an external overnight record or reconcile a midnight split before deciding which hours belong in the reviewed week.
Nova Scotia restaurant scheduling scenario
A Halifax restaurant raises a line cook from 46 scheduled hours to 50 after a weekend event. The manager should flag two potential overtime hours under the general rule, confirm the employee is not in a special category, review the break record, and keep holiday eligibility separate from simple days-worked counts. The schedule is evidence for review, not the final payroll decision.
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 "must work scheduled before/after" rule cannot be perfectly verified from actual shift data — the estimate flags this and asks for review.
Industry-specific wage orders or exemptions may override the general rule.
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 Nova Scotia 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.
