If you have a professional job, do you work at the weekend?

[JNicholson]

I’m in a professional sector where I suspect it’s pretty much the norm to do some work at the weekend, even though it’s not officially required. But I don’t want to, and I also just don’t feel I have the stamina to - I need the rest of a full weekend. Just wondering how this compares with professional roles more broadly, and what the norm is. Do you do some work at the weekend, or take the full weekend off?

YABU - I regularly do some work at the weekend
YANBU - I take the full weekend off

Nope. I don’t know why we do it in this country, plenty of other places work the hours and roles they’re paid for and nothing else which is how it should be.

I am at board level and I used to do lots at weekends, but this year I’ve been starting to suffer burnout symptoms and have been physically unwell (nothing major, just more flu/cold type things) and I’ve lost the motivation to do that extra work in the past few months. Interestingly, no one at all has seemed to notice I’ve done less work!

NHS corporate. Contracted 37.5 hours but was averaging 80-90 hours last year and 70 hours the year before - no over time payment. I forced myself to break the cycle and push back. Im averaging 50 hour weeks now but keep it within the week days. I feel burnt out if I don't have 2 work free days. But I think about work a lot even when off duty, no time to reflect in working hours - its the price I pay for the salary.

As a teacher, I used to go in early and work until about 5 then go home and work a few hours 2-3 evenings a week. I also used to do some hours on a Sunday in preparation for Monday. In my fourth year, I realised it was creeping more into my personal time. I was turning down time with my family at the weekend to plan and mark then I’d get grumpy. I was having to reinvent the wheel too often as well (had 4 HODs in 4 years across 2 schools) so I rarely used any of my resources multiple times and found it was sometimes frowned upon.

Each year I spent in education, instead of feeling more competent at my job, I found myself feeling increasingly under pressure to do more with less time on my timetable. Any concern I raised to HODs about workload was met with ‘welcome to teaching’ type comments and the tiredness led to me struggling in the classroom with energy levels and behaviour in a kind of vicious cycle.

I began to put on weight eating fast food and snacks to pick me up after work. I had issues with migraines from not drinking enough water and started to lose fitness, as well as confidence in myself and general enjoyment of life. I tried to change school hoping that would help but realised i wouod always struggling with those boundaries in teaching.

I left this summer and now do a sales job for more money than I was on and walk out the door at 4pm. I’ve already lost weight and got my spark back. It’s completely changed my life and I won’t be looking back!

I do but only because I get paid extra for it. If I didn't I'd be working even more hours during the week then I already do.

I do appreciate how lucky I am to get double time at weekends, I know it's just assumed in some roles.

I’m a CEO and usually do 3-4 hours at some point most weekends. If I have plans, or if I’m knackered, then I give it a miss. I generally finish at 6pm a couple of days a week and later at least once a week. But I can also take a few hours out once or twice a month and I value the flexibility. I average a 45 hour week, but 60 isn’t unheard of and nor is 30.

The way I see it is that I am paid to do a job rather than work a set number of hours. My board have the same view and I negotiate my salary on that basis.

So for me using the word 'job' in the title of the thread and then saying 'professional' is the stumbling point.

Teacher - a few hours on a Sunday usually, either marking, planning or trying to get ahead for the coming week (I have a leadership role). It’s not great but I worked an extremely demanding public sector job prior to teaching where I was at the mercy of a Blackberry and a Chief Exec at all hours, so it doesn’t really feel any different really.

Finance / professional services - yes to weekends, for client or reporting deadlines.

Evenings - I sometimes leave office /
or log off early for DC related things so I make up that time or check on things in the evening after bed time.

Banking. Yes, either late evenings, early mornings or weekends, and regularly all of the above to stay on top of things. Should do some now but just can't after a really long week - so I'll do at 5am before the kids wake up. I do earn a shitload of money by most people's standards so it's kind of part of the deal.

Same as this.

Just keep an eye on my phone, don’t find it a big deal.

I wouldn’t bat an eyelid at a call at 7am or 7pm any day of the week however, which is probably unusual for most jobs.

Nope. Investment banking and work a minimum of 7.30am - 7.30pm, 5 days a week in the office. Even on a Friday I’m still at my desk at 7.30pm. I don’t work weekends. I would if it was absolutely essential but barely see DC during the week so weekends are precious - and generally taken up with driving them about to sports fixtures.

Interesting, as other posters don’t seem to have stumbled.

So from my perspective this thread started well but is becoming more of a depressing read, as it sounds like a lot of people do… I used to work Sunday afternoons sometimes if I had a deadline, but increasingly I just hate the idea of it.

No, I’m too old and knackered. I need the weekend to rest.

Very rarely but I do occasionally need to travel on a Sunday

I work most weeknights but not weekends

Another solicitor here. I really try hard these days not to work evenings and weekends. As I’ve got older I’ve realised it’s just not worth it - the stress, not feeling valued (because you don’t get any thanks for it!) and more so - the not being paid for it! I can’t remember the last time I did ‘extra’ in this way, but if it was something really urgent and I knew I would struggle in working hours then I would do the extra because at the end of the day it’s for my sanity, not my employer’s. As I’ve got older I can manage my time a bit better at work and understand what I have the capacity to do and what I need to refuse. I massively resent work eating into my personal time these days, I prefer to spend my free time with my children.

I should have added this to my post too!! When I was younger and worked all the hours I could cope with it, now I’m older I find my eyesight really poor in the evenings when I’m tired and I really need the weekend to catch up with everything and to rest.

I have a senior IT role so occasionally if there’s an important launch, deployment etc. will check in with the team or take part in go/no-go calls. Other than that only very occasionally.

Sometimes, yes. Maybe one weekend a month, on average, but it’s usually only for a few hours. I work in an area where requirements can be very time sensitive and things can’t always wait until Monday.

Tbh I hate it and wish I could have every weekend completely free, but it’s the nature of the job and one of the reasons it’s well paid. So I live with it.

Yes. GP partner and sadly work both late into the evenings and also at the weekends (as do most of my colleagues)

Depending on your salary, your employer could be in breach of minimum wage regulations.

Depends. There are periods of high project volume that mean I have to do some work during weekends, but there is also periods of downtime which mean I work 5-6 hours a day or can finish around lunchtime on Friday.

I work for a large multinational. No work at weekends and no routine work after 5.30pm on weeknights, except for meetings, a handful of times a year. I am not resting at the weekend though - it's hard work keeping up with 2 primary aged dcs and their activities!