The correct answer is: C. should be charged to the job directly.
Overtime premium is the additional amount paid to employees for working beyond their regular working hours. It is usually paid at a higher rate than the regular hourly rate.
If overtime is resorted to at the desire of the customer, then the overtime premium should be charged to the job directly. This is because the customer is the one who is benefiting from the overtime work, and therefore should be the one who pays for it.
Option A is incorrect because costing profit and loss account is used to track the costs of production. Overtime premium is not a production cost, so it should not be charged to this account.
Option B is incorrect because overtime premium should be charged to the job that it is incurred on. Not charging it at all would mean that the cost of overtime is not being accurately reflected in the job’s costs.
Option D is incorrect because the overtime premium should be charged to the job directly, not to the highest profit making department. The department that is responsible for the overtime work should be the one that pays for it.