Is an Employer Allowed to Require Overtime Work? It could be constructive dismissal...
- noahkadish
- 9 hours ago
- 3 min read
Questions about overtime come up frequently, especially when workloads increase or staffing levels change. Whether an employer can require you to work additional hours depends largely on what was agreed to when the employment relationship began and how the role has been treated over time.
When Your Original Employment Terms Matter
At the start of employment, the agreed-upon hours of work form a core part of the employment contract. If you were hired for a role that clearly contemplated a standard workweek, such as 40 hours, and there was no expectation of regular overtime, your employer does not have unlimited flexibility to significantly increase your hours. Employers are not free to unilaterally rewrite fundamental terms of employment after the fact.
Where overtime was never part of the original understanding, a sudden requirement to regularly work substantially longer hours can amount to a fundamental change to the job. The law looks at what a reasonable person in your position would have understood the job to require at the time you accepted it.
When Mandatory Overtime Can Cross the Line
If an employer insists on ongoing overtime that was never contemplated and ignores an employee’s objections, this can raise the issue of constructive dismissal. Constructive dismissal occurs when an employer makes a significant change to a core term of employment without consent, effectively forcing the employee to choose between accepting the new terms or leaving the job.
In those circumstances, an employee may have the option to treat the employment relationship as ended and seek severance, similar to a wrongful dismissal claim. This is highly fact-specific and depends on the extent of the change, the frequency of the overtime, and how the employer responds when concerns are raised. A minor change, might not amount to a constructive dismissal.
Past Acceptance Can Change the Analysis
The situation is different where an employee has consistently worked overtime in the past without objection. If overtime has been regularly performed over a meaningful period of time, the employer may argue that overtime has become an implied term of the employment relationship. Once a pattern of acceptance is established, it is much harder to later refuse overtime and claim that the requirement is improper.
This is why timing and consistency matter. An employee who immediately raises concerns about unexpected overtime is in a very different position than someone who works extended hours for months or years and only later objects.
Why Employment Agreements Are So Important
Overtime disputes often trace back to unclear or poorly understood employment agreements. Contracts frequently include language about flexible hours, business needs, or overtime expectations, sometimes in broad terms that employees overlook. Understanding these clauses before signing can prevent serious problems later.
Having an employment agreement reviewed before accepting a role can clarify whether overtime is truly required, how much flexibility the employer has, and whether the compensation structure reflects those expectations. Once the agreement is signed and the job begins, the employer’s ability to impose additional hours may be far broader.
Keep in mind, as stated above, once you accept a certain change it may become an established part of your working relationship. You may eventually lose the opportunity to object to the change after it has become the new status-quo, even if your employment contract reflected the original terms of the relationship prior to the change.
Getting Advice Before the Situation Escalates
If you are being asked to work significantly more hours than you agreed to, or are unsure whether overtime is actually required under your contract, legal advice early on can be critical. Overtime disputes can quickly evolve into constructive dismissal claims, but missteps in how concerns are raised can affect your rights.
Understanding your employment terms, your past practices, and your options before the situation escalates can help protect both your job and your potential severance entitlement if the relationship breaks down.
