Started Half Hour

The Started Half Hour calculator rounds the matched duration up to the nearest started half hour (30 minutes). It is the typical rule for break-related and on-call supplements where any started 30-minute block is paid in full.

When to use

Use this calculator when the agreement says something like “every started half hour counts” or “paid by half-hour units”. A 17-minute interval is paid as 30 minutes; a 31-minute interval is paid as 60 minutes; a 30-minute interval is paid as 30 minutes (no extra block).

If the agreement pays the exact matched minutes, use Minutes instead. If it pays a percentage multiplier, use Percentage.

Parameters

This calculator takes no configuration.

How it works

The calculator processes the ranges that survived the rule’s filters in two steps:

1. Merge nearby ranges. Ranges that are less than 30 minutes apart are merged into a single range. This ensures that a short break in the middle of a longer qualifying period is not treated as two separate started-half-hour starts.
2. Round each merged range up to the next 30 minutes. The duration is rounded up to the next multiple of 30 — 1–30 minutes become 30, 31–60 minutes become 60, 61–90 minutes become 90, and so on.

The sum of the rounded merged ranges is the rule’s result.

Examples

• A single 17-minute range → merged with itself → rounded up to 30 minutes.
• Two ranges of 20 minutes each, 10 minutes apart → merged into one 50-minute range → rounded up to 60 minutes (not 60 = 30 + 30).
• Two ranges of 20 minutes each, 45 minutes apart → not merged → each rounded up to 30 minutes → 60 minutes total.
• A 30-minute range → already aligned → stays 30 minutes.
• A 31-minute range → rounded up to 60 minutes.