How to use the part-time hours threshold calculator
The United States has no equivalent of the Korean 15-hour weekly line that switches basic labor protections on and off. Part-time status here mostly affects benefits eligibility, and the number that matters is 30 hours a week. Enter four weeks of hours to see where an employee lands.
Legal basis — For the employer shared responsibility provisions, a full-time employee is one who averages at least 30 hours of service per week or 130 hours of service per calendar month (26 U.S.C. 4980H; 26 C.F.R. 54.4980H-1(a)(21)). Part-time hours are aggregated into full-time equivalents by dividing monthly hours, capped at 120 per employee, by 120, which is how an employer determines whether it is an applicable large employer with 50 or more full-time employees and equivalents. FMLA eligibility turns on a different figure: 1,250 hours of service in the 12 months before the leave, plus 50 employees within 75 miles (29 U.S.C. 2611(2)). Retirement plans now have their own long-term part-time rule. Crucially, minimum wage and overtime under the FLSA apply to every non-exempt employee no matter how few hours they work. Figures current as of September 2026.
State benefit mandates and paid leave laws set their own hour thresholds, so check the state as well as the federal number.
This calculator is for reference only and is not legal advice. Consult a licensed attorney or benefits adviser about your specific situation.
Frequently Asked Questions
No. Federal law does not define part time by an hour count for wage and hour purposes, and minimum wage and overtime rules apply from the first hour. The 30-hour figure comes from the Affordable Care Act and matters for health coverage, not for basic pay protections.
It is a way of adding part-time hours together. Monthly hours for each part-time employee, capped at 120, are divided by 120 and the results are summed. If that total plus the full-time headcount reaches 50, the employer is an applicable large employer subject to the shared responsibility rules.