Almost every company at some point asks an employee to work past his or her normal shift. If this request forces the employee to work beyond 40 hours in a work week, the company must comply by labor overtime rules. An employee that works more than 40 hours a week must be paid time and a half for those hours over 40. While the law seems very basic, it does not stop some employer abuses: The law does not state how long a work day must be. An employer can force an employee to work a 20-hour day as long at the work hours do not exceed 40 hours in one week, If an employee was used to working Monday through Friday and is forced to switch to a weekend shift, this is not a violation of the labor overtime rules as long as the employee does not work more than 40 hours. Violations of the labor overtime rules are investigated by the U.S. Department of Labor.