To think 45 hours a week is too much

[Letthebodieshitthefloor]

Monday to Friday 9-6 with a 30 minute lunch break.
I'm sure there will be people on here who say they do 70/80 hours a week but I just feel that even 45 is slightly too much. Thinking of seeing if I can cut down to 4 days and 36 hours.

Would depend on commute for me - I used to do that pre kids with a half hour commute and it was absolutely fine.

With kids, would only work if from home.

I currently do 8-5 4 days a week and the fifth day is with my 2 year old and doing school run for 5 year old so not super relaxing and it's fine. I could do it 5 days a week, I would just miss the time with the kids

It’s not that much more than a normal 40 hour week
I work 7.30-4.30 one week then 9-6 the next week with an hours unpaid lunch break
It’s 40 hours
Yours is 42.5 hours

I'm sure you'll be told that those hours are nothing and people will brag about the hours they work as if its a badge of honour but I think it's a lot. I work 36 now and I think that's too much. Who said we had to spend our life working? If people can find other ways, good on them.

In my industry that's fairly standard hours although it's starting to come down a bit in some areas. But that's balanced off by working out of hours in the times you need to as well - odd phonecalls etc.

I think it depends how much you earn too. If you're well compensated for it.

If it's too much for you then it's too much for you. In my 20s & 30s it was my normal. Now I probably end up doing more some weeks and much less others but it's not about presenteeism because I work for me!

It would be too much for me now, I do 35 hours in an office job.

But I did use to work in a pub and would regularly do 12 hour shifts with only a half hour break. I suspect the likes of nurses and police officers do similar in shifts.

Only you can say whether it's too much for you.

I work from 8 am until 5 pm Monday to Friday.

It works well, because I work from home full-time.

I have 45 minutes lunch break and 2 x 15 minutes small breaks a day.

I also earn what I consider a very good salary.

It also depends whether that 42.5 hours is all that’s expected of you or if there is an expectation for you to do more
I have never understood this. If you are ' expected to do more' is it unpaid? Do you have to do more than you are contracted to? Is it all the time ir just occasionally?
Genuine question.
Where I work we have a number of weekly hours that you are paid ( 37)but it is worked out over the month. So some weeks I might do 40 and the following week I may do 34. As long as it balances to 148 over a 4 week period it's ok. Most of our different teams in our department work like this. Some weeks I may be scheduled to do 20 hours and decide when and how I want to make the other 17 up during the monthly period.
However a regular 45hour week would be too much for me.

God, I used to do 10-5.30 with an hour lunch break and slacking off a lot, and still hated work ruling my life. 9-6 with half an hour is basically prison with access to Pret.

Too much for me. I work 28 hours a week. I don't have a "career" though and have no interest in climbing the ladder, I value my downtime more than earning a lot of money.

Too much for what? If you don’t need the money, the sure it is too much.

Not enough information to vote.

It depends on the type of workand salary, plus commute. Most people I know who are very top % earners work 9 to 10 hours per day, plus more when working on a deadline/project. But, I also know some of their nannies who work anywhere from 10 to 12 hours per day.

Far too much, it’s nearly a full day more than those working a 37.5 week.

That's similar, if a bit less to what I do as a teacher, With DC it is a lot but in the grand scheme of things 45 hours isn't too bad. More than I would like to work though. Is there any scope to cut the hours down?

@ChessieFL

It also depends whether that 42.5 hours is all that’s expected of you or if there is an expectation for you to do more. In my industry there’s an expectation to do a bit over contracted hours, say an hour a day, but the contracted hours are 36.25 so the extra hour broadly equates to your 42.5 hours. I would struggle to do more than that on top on a regular basis.

This. I used to have a job where I was paid for a 35 hour week but worked anything up to 50 hours a week. I was shattered.

I’ve worked 40 hr weeks for the last year.I do feel it depends on your job and mine is quite physical. I feel it’s far too many hours for me and debating asking to reduce to 4 days, between the house, the kids, my mum and my husband I feel I’m being pulled in every direction and not spending quality time with anyone or doing anything, I’m constantly knackered.

This fortnight holiday over Christmas has shown me that life is far too short to be working long days. I need more me time!

I’m guessing teacher? As a head of dept I did 7:30-7:30 four days a week plus 8-4 on a Friday as a treat God knows I couldn’t/wouldn’t live like that now.

@irregularegular

It's very personal. YANBU to say it is too much for you. For other people it might be absolutely fine.

It depends on how much you enjoy your work, how long the commute is, how flexible the hours/location can be, how much you are paid, your other responsibilities and how much help you have with them. Whether you can afford to pay for a cleaner etc.

In a well-paid job that you love, with little or no commute or kids (or excellent support) then it's not a problem.

This ^

Also depends on what you are doing for your job - how physically demanding it is; how mentally draining; how emotionally challenging.

@NatashaBedwouldbenice

I’m guessing teacher? As a head of dept I did 7:30-7:30 four days a week plus 8-4 on a Friday as a treat God knows I couldn’t/wouldn’t live like that now.

Lots of jobs require longer hours!

I work 40-45 hours a week. I think it's too much too. Not when I didn't have kids though.

Used to be 4 days in office pre covid. Then 5 days WFH in lockdown, then hybrid 3 days in office, now back to 5 days WFH.

I don't enjoy it but don't know what else to do without taking a big cut. Ideally I'd love to do 35 hours and would happily do it for pro rata current pay but such a job doesn't exist (or has alluded me).

*eluded !

Each person is different, each person copes with different amounts of work.

I sometimes need to do three 75 hour weeks followed by 10 days off, but that’s just the nature of my job. I really couldn’t cope with a 9-6 job, others would lose their mind within a month of working my schedule. We’re all different.

It's hardly out of the ordinary surely. Where I live a 40 hour week is standard.

I'm contracted to 42 as standard FT hrs
9.30 - 6, an hours break per day

YANBU. Life's too short to be spending all your time at work, especially if you are raising family.

UK has some of the longest working hours in the developed world yet its productivity is one of the lowest.

@Letthebodieshitthefloor

Monday to Friday 9-6 with a 30 minute lunch break. I'm sure there will be people on here who say they do 70/80 hours a week but I just feel that even 45 is slightly too much. Thinking of seeing if I can cut down to 4 days and 36 hours.

I think it depends on your circumstances and the job, I used to work 7.30am to 3pm monday to friday and 10-4 on sundays, so a six day week sometimes I did saturdays. and I went out to get the first bus at 6.50am and didnt get home till after 4pm.

but I loved my job and my work mates were great fun and tbh most days we were straight in the pub after work, home was just where I slept, work was fun.

but that was before I had kids, it would be impossible with commitments and what if your on your feet all day etc, if the job is tiring, mind numbing, stressful or you just have to deal with the kids, caring for elderly relatives etc when you get home, I think how many hours is too many is very subjective and a personal choice as only you know you and how long hours in your job would affect you.