Daylight saving time: how is my overnight shift paid?
Last updated: November 11, 2026
Applies to: US W-2 employees paid by the hour who work an overnight (graveyard) shift on the night the clocks change for daylight saving time. Independent contractors record and bill time under their own agreement, and this article covers US rules only, so it does not apply to contractors or to employees in Canada or other countries.
Summary: You are paid for the hours you actually work. When the clocks go back in November, an overnight shift that runs through 2:00 a.m. is one hour longer than its start and end times suggest, and that extra hour is paid. When the clocks go forward in March, the shift is one hour shorter, and you are paid for the hours you actually worked.
Why your shift is longer or shorter that night
Clocks go back (fall back): daylight saving time ends on the first Sunday in November. At 2:00 a.m. the clocks are set back to 1:00 a.m., so if you are working, you work the hour from 1:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m. twice.
Clocks go forward (spring forward): daylight saving time starts on the second Sunday in March. At 2:00 a.m. the clocks jump to 3:00 a.m., so the hour from 2:00 a.m. to 3:00 a.m. is never worked.
Federal wage law requires employees to be credited with all the hours they actually work, so your pay for that night follows the time you really worked, not the hours on your schedule.
Example
Your scheduled shift is 11:00 p.m. to 7:30 a.m. with a 30-minute unpaid break. On a normal night, that is 8 hours of work.
The night the clocks go back (November): you work 9 hours, and you are paid for 9 hours.
The night the clocks go forward (March): you work 7 hours, and you are paid for 7 hours.
This assumes you work the whole scheduled shift. A shift that does not run through 2:00 a.m. on those nights is not affected.
What to do on the night the clocks change
If you enter your own time in Ascen:
Enter your real start and end times and your unpaid break as usual (see How do I add time sheets?).
Before you submit, check that the total hours for that shift match the hours you actually worked (9 or 7 in the example, not 8).
If the total does not match, email support@ascen.com before the timesheet is approved, with the assignment, the date, your start and end times and the hours you actually worked.
If the timesheet is already approved, you can no longer change it yourself. Email timesheets@ascen.com with the assignment, the date and what should change.
If your staffing partner or client enters your time: check the hours for that night under Timesheets in your Ascen portal. If they do not match the hours you worked, tell your staffing partner so the hours can be corrected before they are approved.
If your hours come from a gig or scheduling app: raise the correction in the app with the business that booked you. See If you get your shifts through a gig or scheduling app: how your hours reach Ascen.
If you were already paid for the wrong hours: email support@ascen.com with the pay period, the date of the shift and the hours you worked. See My paycheck is short or missing hours: what to do.
If you worked your whole scheduled shift and your hours for that night are exactly one hour more (November) or one hour less (March) than your schedule shows, that is the time change, not a mistake. A difference of any other size is not explained by the time change alone, so check the hours as described above.
Does the extra hour count toward overtime?
Yes. The extra hour is time worked like any other hour, so it counts toward overtime in the same way. Overtime rules depend on your work location, and some states count overtime by the day as well as by the week. See How US employee overtime and double-time pay work and Overtime Pay (U.S. Department of Labor).
If your location does not change its clocks
Some places, such as most of Arizona and Hawaii, do not observe daylight saving time. If your work location does not change its clocks, nothing changes: your overnight shift is the same length as on any other night.
Where to get help
Your staffing partner: your schedule, and entering or approving your hours if they handle your timesheets.
Ascen (support@ascen.com): your pay, pay corrections, and checking the hours recorded for a shift on the night the clocks changed.