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Compressed Work Schedule Masterclass

Understanding the 9/80 Work Schedule

How the 9/80 compressed schedule delivers 26 three-day weekends per year while remaining fully compliant with Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) statutory overtime rules.

Key Schedule Statistics

Cycle Duration

14 Days

2-Week Repeating Cycle

Total Hours

80 Hours

9 Days Worked (8x9h + 1x8h)

Flex Days Off

26 Days

3-Day Weekends Annually

FLSA Status

40h / Week

With Midday Friday Split

1. Anatomy of the 9/80 Schedule

The 9/80 compressed work schedule compresses 80 standard full-time hours into nine working days over two calendar weeks. Rather than working ten 8-hour days, employees work nine-hour days Monday through Thursday, with alternating Fridays providing an 8-hour shift and a full day off.

Week 1: The Working Week (44 Clock Hours)

  • Monday – Thursday: 9 hours worked each day (36 hours)
  • Friday: 8 hours worked (44 total clock hours)
  • Saturday – Sunday: 2 days standard weekend rest

Week 2: The Flex Week (36 Clock Hours)

  • Monday – Thursday: 9 hours worked each day (36 hours)
  • Friday (Flex Day Off): 0 hours worked (3-Day Weekend!)
  • Saturday – Sunday: 2 days standard weekend rest

2. The Essential FLSA Friday Midday Split

Under Section 7 of the Fair Labor Standards Act (29 U.S.C. § 207), non-exempt employees must receive statutory overtime (1.5x regular pay) for all hours worked over 40 in a designated workweek. Because Week 1 contains 44 clock hours, an unmodified 7-day Sunday-to-Saturday payroll week would trigger 4 hours of overtime every pay period.

To solve this, employers use the FLSA Midday Friday Split:

How the Statutory Workweek Is Defined:

The employer defines the official 168-hour statutory workweek to begin exactly four hours into Friday's shift (typically 12:00 PM or 12:30 PM).

Statutory Workweek A:

Friday 12:00 PM through following Friday 11:59 AM.

4h (Fri) + 36h (Mon-Thu) + 0h (Off Fri) = 40.0 Hours

Statutory Workweek B:

Friday 12:00 PM through following Friday 11:59 AM.

0h (Off Fri) + 36h (Mon-Thu) + 4h (Working Fri) = 40.0 Hours

Result: Neither statutory workweek exceeds 40 hours. Overtime is avoided completely while employees retain their biweekly 80-hour salary.

3. Holiday and PTO Administration Rules

Managing holidays and personal leave requires formal workplace policies to prevent hour deficits:

Holidays on 9-Hour Workdays

Standard corporate holiday policies grant 8 hours of holiday pay. If a holiday falls on a Monday–Thursday (9-hour shift), the employee is credited with 8 hours of holiday pay. The remaining 1 hour is typically covered by 1 hour of accrued PTO or made up during the pay period.

Holidays on Flex Days Off

If a federal holiday falls on an employee's scheduled Friday off (or on a weekend), employers grant an "in-lieu-of" holiday on the preceding Thursday, preserving the scheduled 3-day weekend and granting 4 consecutive rest days.

Generate Your 9/80 Work Schedule Calendar

Preview your alternating flex Fridays and export directly to Google Calendar, Outlook, or CSV.

Open 9/80 Generator

Frequently asked questions

What is a 9/80 work schedule?
A 9/80 schedule is a compressed work arrangement where an employee completes eighty hours of work across nine business days within a two-week (14-day) payroll period, earning every other Friday (or Monday) off as a designated flex day.
How does the Friday workweek split work to avoid overtime?
Under the US Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), overtime is assessed over a 168-hour workweek. To keep non-exempt employees at 40 hours per workweek, employers define the workweek to begin and end exactly midway through the working Friday shift (e.g., 12:00 PM). Four hours of the Friday shift belong to Workweek 1 (36 + 4 = 40 hours), and the remaining four hours belong to Workweek 2 (4 + 36 = 40 hours).
What happens when a federal holiday falls on a 9/80 flex day off?
When a recognized federal or corporate holiday falls on an employee's scheduled flex day off, employers typically provide an 'in-lieu-of' holiday on the preceding Thursday or the subsequent Monday, preserving the employee's scheduled three-day weekend.
How is paid time off (PTO) tracked on a 9/80 schedule?
PTO on a 9/80 schedule is charged by the actual hours scheduled for that workday. Taking a scheduled 9-hour day off requires deducting 9 hours of accrued PTO, whereas taking the 8-hour working Friday off requires 8 hours of PTO.
Which industries commonly adopt 9/80 schedules?
The 9/80 schedule is widely used across aerospace engineering, defense contracting (e.g., Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman), federal civilian agencies (NASA, DoD), municipal utilities, and oil and gas corporations.