The starting point: rate and hours
For any hourly or part-time worker, two things drive pay:
- Agreed hourly rate — the figure in their contract.
- Hours worked — the actual hours, captured by clock-in/out or supervisor record.
The biggest source of dispute is the second one. If your record of hours is "what was scheduled", and the worker says they stayed 15 minutes late on three shifts, you have a problem. Capture actual hours.
What the hourly rate covers
The agreed hourly rate covers normal hours up to contractual daily and weekly limits. Beyond that, multipliers apply.
The multipliers
| Scenario | Pay calculation |
|---|---|
| Normal hours | Hours × hourly rate |
| OT (beyond contract hours, Part IV) | Hours × hourly rate × 1.5 |
| Working on a PH | Normal day pay + extra day's basic OR day off in lieu |
| Working on a rest day (employer's request, up to half daily hours) | 0.5 day's pay |
| Working on a rest day (employer's request, full daily hours) | 1 day's pay |
| Working on a rest day, beyond daily hours | 1 day + 1.5x OT for additional hours |
Worked examples
Example 1: Standard week, no OT
Part-timer at S$12/hour. Works 4 shifts of 6 hours = 24 hours. Gross pay = 24 × S$12 = S$288.
Example 2: Some OT
Same part-timer, this week works 4 shifts of 6 hours plus a 9-hour shift on a peak day (her contract caps daily at 8 hours, so 1 hour OT). Total: 24 + 8 normal + 1 OT.
Gross: (24 + 8) × S$12 + 1 × S$12 × 1.5 = S$384 + S$18 = S$402.
Example 3: Public holiday work
Part-timer rostered for an 8-hour shift on a PH. Pay = normal 8 hours × S$12 (gross for the day) + an extra day's basic pay = 96 + 96 = S$192. Alternative: 96 + a day off in lieu later.
Example 4: Rest day work at employer's request
Part-timer (rest day is Sunday) asked to work 5 hours on a Sunday. Her usual daily hours are 6. 5 hours is less than half-daily? No, 5 hours is more than half of 6 but less than full. So she gets 1 day's pay for the rest day work = 6 × S$12 = S$72 (even though she only worked 5 hours).
Note: Rest day pay is on the basis of daily hours, not hours actually worked. If she had worked 7 hours (1 hour beyond daily), it would be 1 day + 1.5x OT for the extra hour = S$72 + (1 × 12 × 1.5) = S$90.
CPF on hourly pay
For SC and PR workers, CPF applies on monthly wages exceeding S$50. Calculate on the gross wages paid in the month (basic + OT + PH + allowances), capped at the Ordinary Wage Ceiling.
For under-55 SC/PR workers: 17% employer + 20% employee CPF. Lower rates for older age bands. The employer portion is on top of the gross wage (your cost); the employee portion is deducted from their pay.
For foreign workers (Work Permit, S Pass): FWL applies in lieu of CPF, paid by the employer to MOM monthly.
Allowable deductions
Under the Employment Act, you can deduct from wages only for specific permitted reasons:
- Absence from work (unpaid leave, AWOL)
- Damage to or loss of employer's property caused by neglect/default (with worker's consent and capped)
- Accommodation, amenity or service provided (with consent, fair value)
- Income tax deductions (where applicable, via IRAS instructions)
- CPF (employee portion)
- Recovery of advances or loans (with consent)
Total deductions cannot exceed 50% of wages in any salary period (other than CPF and IRAS instructions). Punitive deductions outside these categories — "late tax", "break tax", "till short" — are generally not permitted without specific written consent and fairness checks.
Stop calculating pay by hand
FlexiWork's PayOut module reads from Rosta, applies SG OT, PH, rest day and CPF rules per worker, and produces a clean pay file ready for bank upload or IRAS submission.
Start free — 14 daysCommon errors
- Using gross hourly rate for OT instead of basic. OT is 1.5x basic hourly rate, not 1.5x rate-plus-allowances.
- PH pay treated as "double time". It is gross day pay plus an extra day's basic, or day in lieu. Different number.
- Rest day work calculated on hours worked, not daily hours. The Act's rest day formulas are based on the worker's daily working hours, not the hours actually worked.
- OT cap of 72 hours per month missed. Easy to overlook when a worker covers multiple shifts.
- CPF on incorrect wage base. Make sure you include OT and other Ordinary Wage components up to the OW Ceiling.
- Rounding errors at scale. Small rounding (always down, always up) compounds. Round per the CPF Board's standard methodology to avoid issues.
Payslips
Singapore requires itemised payslips for all Employment Act employees. The payslip must show:
- Employer name
- Employee name
- Date of payment / pay period
- Basic salary
- Start and end date of the salary period
- Allowances and other components
- Deductions (CPF, income tax, others with description)
- Hours worked (for hourly/part-time staff)
- OT hours and OT pay
- Net pay
Electronic payslips are fine — most SG payroll software produces them automatically.