Legal Question in Employment Law in California

You're entitled to overtime when you work over 40 hours in a workweek, not 8 hours in a day.

The trouble with lawyers in another state answer a question in California is that sometimes they are wrong. In California, non-exempt employees are entitled to overtime pay when you work more than 8 hours within a 24 hour period. The question is, what time does the work day begin? That can be set by the employer. But once they determine the beginning of the workday, any hours worked within that 24 hour period or in excess of 40 hours in a workweek, are payable at overtime premiums.

Mr. Kirschbaum is right. The vast majority of employers clock their workday at midnight, but those who regularly have shifts that cross midnight will usually have another time. It can also be different for different job categories. I worked in college for a company that had both security and building maintenance divisions. Because janitors worked generally 6p to 2:30a with a half-hour lunch, the building maintenance division was on a 6am to 6am work day. Because the guards' shifts started at midnight and ran until 8:30, they were on the traditional midnight to midnight work day. So you need to find out what your employer's work day is.