# Changing the contract without distorting overtime

> The procedure to follow before changing an employee's weekly hours to avoid an incorrect recalculation of past overtime.

Source: https://help.shyfter.com/en/team/changing-the-contract-without-distorting-overtime  
Category: Team  
Updated: 2026-06-30

## Why this precaution is important

When you change the **Number of hours per week** field in an employee's contractual data, Shyfter automatically recalculates all overtime based on the new volume. The result: the entire history is distorted.

To avoid this, you must **freeze the counter before changing the contract**. It is a quick step that protects the accuracy of your data.

## Step-by-step procedure

### 1. Access the employee's counters

Open the employee's profile via **Team → Users**, then click the **Counters** tab.

### 2. Set the counter at the week of the change

1. Locate the week **just before** the contract change.
2. Click the **pencil icon** at the end of the row.
3. Enter the **total accumulated overtime** up to that date.
4. Add a comment to keep a clear record (e.g.: "Counter frozen before switch to 32h").
5. Save.

### 3. Change the contract

Once the counter is frozen:

1. Go back to the **Contractual data** tab.
2. Change the number of hours per week according to the new contract.
3. Save.

From that moment, Shyfter starts again from the frozen balance and calculates the new overtime based on the new contract, without touching the history.

## What not to do

If you directly change the number of hours per week without having frozen the counter, all past overtime will be recalculated at the new rate. The history becomes inaccurate and difficult to correct after the fact.