Salary and hours worked

[HiveQueen]

I’m just wondering what salary you would expect to work more hours than contracted?

I’m contract to work 37 hours a week and earn approx £35,000. I regularly work more than these hours to fit in everything I need to and am always behind in responding to emails. I am efficient and have a high output (which has been feedback to me by my manager) which I think is why I am given a high workload.

I’ve been talking to a friend who is on a similar salary who will never go beyond her contracted hours. On a salary of £35,000 would you expect to work additional hours?

Some days I feel aggrieved, others I think it’s reasonable. It will settle the internal argument I have to hear others opinions.

@Elieza

Think about the extra fee hours you work. If there’s five in your team say and you all do an hour extra a night that’s almost a full time post’s worth!!

If you didn’t do that free work the company would have to hire someone else.

Lots of good hard working educated professionals have been made redundant during covid.

If your company stepped up that could take someone out of unemployment. I know I was very grateful for jobs, having been made redundant three times in my lifetime.

You’re not doing anyone my favours by working for free. Stop it. Join the union and work towards a better home life balance and a better future for those about to lose their homes etc as they’ve lost their jobs an nobody’s hiring.

Just because ‘it’s expected’ or ‘it’s always been this way’ doesn’t mean it’s right. It’s not.

The only way to change bad to good is for us to stand up and stand firm. That’s how change is made. Brave people standing up and saying no more.

Just say no, sorry, my circumstances have changed and I will no longer be able to work for free outwith my standard hours.

While people shouldn’t be expected to work overtime regularly it’s naive to think that not doing so somehow creates job opportunities for others. Or that companies aren’t hiring because all these people doing overtime for free are taking up space. Too much overtime is usually bad management (who won’t go through the entire process to hire new people anyway as they can’t manage resource) or general underfunding (a school can’t magic money out of nowhere for instance).

Bad management eventually lose their best staff…

Also to add - this is for ‘normal’ profession. Some highly paid professions..well the base pay is high for a reason . If it’s expected (like in audit during busy season) saying ‘no free hours’ is likely to get you marked for poor performance and conduct/attitude issues

…or someone more senior asks why targets are not being met and the staff refuse to work for free so more get hired.

I’m responding to tractor sorry if I was unclear.

I earn similar and do work extra on occasion and am contactable out of hours, its just the nature of the job. In return my workplace treats me like an adult and allows in work time appointments (even for things like haircuts) and late starts/ early finishes for things like sports day and school plays. I don't need to count up leui time etc for this its a mutually trusting work relationship. If you have that sort of arrangement working extra is fine. I wouldn't routinely work extra without that flexibility in return for this salary.

I worked overtime without additional pay when I was earning £12k a year on a training contract. More fool me some may say but it's pretty much expected in my industry (accountancy). 15 years later I'm trying to cut down on it for more work/life balance but if something needs finished by a deadline I have to ensure its done, even if it means working late. I earn a fair amount more than I did whilst training though.

Many employment contracts have a clause which says your hours are 9-5 (or whatever) but the followed by wording the gist of which is “but from time to time you may be expected to work longer than that in order to fulfil the tasks of your role”

Does yours?

As many others have said it entirely depends in the job. Many lawyers, accountants, doctors, bankers etc etc wouldn’t dream of insisting on only working to their contracted hours or expect additional payment. It just is what happens. It’s how you progress and typically it’s the junior team members doing most hours

I work as long as it takes to get the job done. I work over my 37 hours every week. I'm paid not bad money for what I do (not as much as the OP) and I like to feel like I've earned it.

@Elieza

…or someone more senior asks why targets are not being met and the staff refuse to work for free so more get hired.

That could also happen, yes - but again it’s environment dependent. Where I have worked people have promised to hire more staff - taken over a year and nothing changed. In the meantime the staff got blamed for targets not being met. And further budget cuts meant hiring plans were put on ice. If the management are the reasonable sort in the first place staff wouldn’t be working those hours. People don’t stay and enable working long hours either. They leave - and that’s as strong a statement as any.