Overtime Compensation of Firefighters Under the Fair Labor Standards Act

A decision was requested concerning the legality of the Civil Service Commission's computation of overtime compensation due firefighters under the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Federal firefighters with 72-hour tours of duty are entitled to 12 hours of overtime compensation under FLSA. Since FLSA required overtime pay at the rate of one and one-half times the regular rate of pay and firefighters have already been paid the regular rate for 12 hours of overtime, extra compensation for overtime is limited to one-half their regular rate of pay.