If you earn around £50k how many unpaid hours extra do you put it?

[SnarkyBag]

Just trying to decide what’s just part of settling into a new role and getting to grips verses what’s reasonable long term. I’m giving it til the new year to settle but right now I’m finding I’m putting at least an extra day each week to keep on top of things.

there’s definitely a learning curve so I’m seeing some of it as professional development but longer term it’s not sustainable and to be honest I’m not really a work for free kind of person (well not for £50k a year anyway!)

obviously I know some professions such as teachers will be working crazy ridiculous hours (which I think is so wrong and insane and a culture that needs to come to an end by the way) but generally speaking how much are people working for free because of unrealistic work loads?

Very few. Some weeks I have certain things in my calendar and I don't claim that back but it's not on a regular enough basis to count. I have to leave on time etc due to childcare. I work four days and definitely feel more productive in those four than I did when I was full time as my day off is for my DC. Private sector - mid management.

Previous job was doing 12hrs a day 5 days a week, contracted 7.5 a day. Still wasn’t enough hours in the day and that’s as a single parent and of a 9 year old. So glad I left. Now it varies, some weeks do 4hrs extra some don’t do any extra. Much better balance

I can (kind of) understand the people on here saying they don’t mind working significantly extra hours as they love their job, but I think people like this need to be aware of the potential negative implications it can have on their colleagues.

Working extra hours often sets up an expectation that colleagues should also do this. Even if it’s not explicitly stated it’s impossible not to see that your colleague sent an email at 10pm, or was working on a report at the weekend. And it takes a strong personality and sense of self not to get caught up in this.

I also think routinely working extra hours does a massive disservice to whoever takes over your job once you’ve moved on. Imagine coming into a role advertised at 40 hours a week and then finding it impossible because the previous person only coped with it by working 60 hours a week.

None.

We usually stay on if we’re in the middle of a time sensitive project, but we’re expected to submit a Time in Lieu claim for anything over our contracted hours.

having worked “career” jobs I much prefer being able to leave when I’m finished, or choose to stay on to build up my annual leave time bank. It’s a healthier culture.

@Scooopsahoy

i agree entirely.

I had a fantastic boss a few years ago (who is now a massive high-flyer earning well into 6 figures).

She said that constantly having to do extra hours is an issue with either the workload or the person and that no one should be doing hours over every week.

I try to remember that with my team and myself.

None - not a minute more than I'm contracted for (40hrs), and I work from home so no commute either.

I don't have any set hours, so it is impossible to tell.

Not one minute extra.

Civil servant.

This is true of DP.

I work part time at the moment but my full time salary is 56k and I put in a minimum of 2 hours extra a day.

I earn around 52k give or take

My salary is based on the work I do for the time I'm contracted. If I do more I book it as credit.

Why would you work for free?

I get just over 50k for 3 days a week. My contract says 21 hours but my target hours adds up to almost 27 hours a week, so I have to work more than I'm strictly contracted for. This week I've done an extra day in total above the 27 hours, but it's not normally that much.
DH gets almost 60k for a full time job and he might do 2 hours extra per week maximum generally . If he works a significant amount more then his boss lets him take unofficial toil.

I remember starting a new job and putting in loads of extra hours to get up to speed. It can be a real baptism of fire at the beginning. When I have been in the job several years I wouldn’t expect to put in any regular extra hours.

None. I only work my contacted hours. NHS.

I work mostly my 37 hours. Some weeks I have to work more but it's not the norm. I worked more when I was new to the role. Not much of an induction period in my line of work (social work management) but I'm pretty quick and efficient in general so I manage my time well. Others do work longer hours but I can see they don't have the organisational skills that I do. (Not being a twat - it took me a LONG time to learn to be so organised, it's not a natural talent)

That isn't true everywhere I earn 57k as an assistant in banking and I work 9-5 but I am in London and that isn't such a great wage there

None. I do less hours than I'm contracted to do. Or I might do a bit extra through choice at times, but I just refuse to do more than I'm supposed to, out of principle. I just don't agree with it.

Dh does more. He always argues that managers must do what the job requires. I just disagree with that view. I know loads of people do it, and it's an engrained thing, but I just disagree with it, in principle.

Sorry. I agree with pancake. Why do it? Long term?

If you are paid say £25 per hour, why do so many extra hours, that you're only being paid £19 per hour.

Why? Why do that to yourself?

When I was on £50k I probably worked a 60 hour week. Still work at least 50 hours a week now but earn 4 times that. I'd say it was worth it.

The overtime I was doing not due to ‘poor time management’ on anyones part but that we were waiting on data from other teams (and they were waiting on other teams and so on) and could not complete our own jobs until this was available.
And/or there were certain times that the volume of work was absolutely overwhelming for the amount of staff we had but not at that high level all the time so no additional headcount.

Contracts at that level aren't really for a set number of hours. They tend to include a provision that allows the employer to ask you to work outside normal hours to meet business needs as required.

That isn't true everywhere I earn 57k as an assistant in banking and I work 9-5 but I am in London and that isn't such a great wage there

What is an "assistant in banking"? I'm in the banking industry.

I think you need to remove London weightings to make meaningful comparisons.

Public sector and I think about 8 hours extra a week. I've reduced to 3 days now and I only do about 6 hours extra a week which is much more manageable. In my last role it was about a 55 hour week rather than the paid 37 but i think you reach a level where that much time is required for the salary.

It's so industry dependent - I work in retail (for a lot less than £50k!) and it is totally normal to work longer than contracted hours.

Bang on. All of these people working extra hours ‘because it’s expected’ or ‘it comes with the job’ - who or what do you think created that expectation?

You are literally the biggest part of the problem, putting pressure on colleagues by just blindly sitting there and doing more than you’re actually being paid for and for what? It won’t get you noticed. It won’t get you ‘ahead’. And it certainly won’t be rewarded when push comes to shove. Not if everyone is doing it because no-one has the backbone to push back against it.

Don’t be such spineless sheep, have some self respect and do something about it while the job market is in your favour.