Overtime, weekend and night pay for council staff

Under the NJC Green Book, council staff at the lower end of the pay spine are entitled to time and a half for extra hours Monday to Saturday, double time on Sundays and public holidays, and time and a third for night work. Those national rates are a fallback. Where a council and its unions have agreed their own premium rates or an inclusive rate, the local deal applies instead, so your contract is what counts.

Who the national rates cover

Part 3, paragraph 2 of the Green Book deals with working arrangements. Anyone required to work extra hours, weekends, nights, sleeping-in duty, public holidays, shifts, evenings, rest days, recall, standby, split shifts or irregular hours must have the pay for that set out in their contract. It can be an inclusive rate, locally agreed premium payments or another method agreed locally.

The fixed national rates in paragraph 2.6 only apply if no local agreement on premium rates has been reached. In the 1 May 2024 copy of the Green Book, they cover employees whose basic pay is at or below point 22 on the spine. For employees at or above point 23, paragraph 2.7 gives the council discretion. It can pay the allowances (but not the additional hours rate), apply an inclusive rate, and make an extra payment for planned additional hours.

Older council documents quote different cut-off points, because the thresholds have changed over the years. If your employer quotes a point number, go by that.

The national rates

Situation	National rate under paragraph 2.6
Extra hours beyond the working week, Monday to Saturday	Time and a half
Extra hours on Sundays and public or extra-statutory holidays	Double time, minimum 2 hours
Saturday as part of the normal week	Time and a half
Sunday as part of the normal week	Time and a half above point 3, double time at or below point 3
Night work as part of the normal week	Time and a third for hours between 8.00 pm and 6.00 am

Working on a public or extra-statutory holiday has its own rule. You are paid plain time for the hours you work within your normal hours that day, on top of normal pay for the day, and you get time off with pay later: a half day if you worked less than half your normal hours, a full day if more.

Sleeping-in duty is paid as an allowance that covers sleeping on the premises and up to 30 minutes of call-out a night. Beyond that, the extra hours rules apply. The allowance was £43.12 from 1 April 2025. The 2026 figure was not available to check, so look at your employer’s current rate.

Part-time staff and extra hours

The national text is specific about part-time staff. They get the enhanced additional-hours rates only at times and in circumstances where a full-time employee in the same establishment would qualify. Otherwise they must work a full week for a full-time employee before the enhancement starts. Pay for extra hours that stay below full-time hours is set locally. Our part-time workers’ rights guide covers equal treatment more widely.

Shifts, standby and recall

Shift working, rest-day working, evenings, recall to work (including travel time), standby, split shifts, irregular hours and lettings have no national rate. The Green Book says local arrangements for compensation will be negotiated. Councils differ a lot on what a standby payment or a call-out pays, and on whether travel time counts. Your terms and conditions or a local allowances policy will have the figures.

London and fringe area allowances are separate. From 1 April 2025 the protected fringe allowances were £1,045 (inner) and £729 (outer), set out in the pay agreement. The London weighting guide covers the wider picture.

How the pay award affects them

When the NJC agrees a pay award, the percentage applies to the pay points and to allowances listed in the agreement. The 2026 award of 3.3% covers points 3 to 43 and allowances from 1 April 2026. Premium rates are multiples of your basic hourly rate, so they rise as your basic pay does. Fixed-sum allowances go up only where the agreement lists them. See the NJC pay award 2026/27 page for the award, and the NJC pay spine for hourly rates by point.

What to check

• Whether your contract names a local premium rate, an inclusive rate or the national fallback.
• Which spine point your basic pay sits on, since that decides which national rule can apply.
• How the council defines night hours and whether a night shift worker gets the night rate or a shift allowance.
• Whether you are paid plain time or an enhanced rate for hours above your contracted hours but below a full-time week.
• Whether enhancements count towards your pension or holiday pay. Ask payroll, or see the LGPS guide for pensionable pay.

Overtime pay is taxed as normal income, and the overtime tax guide explains why it can look smaller on a payslip. If a payment is missing, raise it with your manager or HR first, then your union.