$68,166 a year. Divide by the hours. The picture changes.
Share the hourly math. At the 80-hour cap the average first-year stipend is $16.39 an hour. Pay that low, on hours that long, is unfair to residents and dangerous for patients who need doctors who are not preoccupied by money stress.
At the 80-hour cap
$16.39/hr
-
If stipend covered 40 hours$32.77
-
Surgery, 83.1 hours$15.77
PGY-1 mean $68,166 / 52 weeks. 96.9% of hospitals pay the same base.
Data table
| Schedule | Hourly |
|---|---|
| At the 80-hour cap | $16.39 |
| If stipend covered 40 hours | $32.77 |
| Surgery, 83.1 hours | $15.77 |
The hourly math
Inputs: $68,166 a year[1], 52 weeks, and the hours in each row. Copy these rates
Real change, 2019–20 → 2025
−5.2%
The raise that was a pay cut
One window: 2019–20 to 2025. Inside a shorter AAMC table, 2020 to 2023, the inflation-adjusted stipend fell 8.5%[87].
Missing overtime premium
$102,248
True value at 80 hrs $170,414 vs stipend $68,166
The overtime gap
Federal law sets 1.5 times the regular rate past 40 hours for covered workers[17]. A separate provision exempts bona fide professional employees[18], and the federal rule on that exemption names interns and residents in training programs[106]. Whether they should be exempt is a policy question. This sizes the missing premium.
Also on the ledger
Childcare can exceed a resident paycheck under a single-income model. The Family page works the math with clear scope.
Residents deserve overtime
Share the hourly math with one leader in your institution. Send the overtime illustration to a policymaker.