If you are a California worker, your overtime wages must be paid at the same time as your regular wages. No. Independent contractors are not entitled to overtime pay under California law.Q: Can my employer deduct money from my paycheck? California law sets particular guidelines for when employers must pay an overtime rate for extra work. California Labor Code 515 exempts certain employees from receiving overtime payment if the Industrial Welfare Commission decides to exempt them. Most employees cannot work more than 40 hours per week or 8 hours per day. If they do, their employer must pay them 1.5 times their normal pay. If someone who is nonexempt works 40 hours in a week, they are entitled to 1.5 times their regular rate of pay for every hour worked beyond 40. A fulltime work week in California is 40 hours. Anything over 40 hours should be paid out at 1.5x regular wages.