If you’re in a high paying/successful career, do you work over your hours?

[Bilingualistic]

I worked way over my hours before I had my DD, now I’m doing drop offs and pick ups (she’s 3) and I just don’t have the spare time to give. I’m in a well paid (for my area) job, earning 50k but I can see that eyes follow me when I leave the office on time (I work 8:30-4:30). I think it’s going to get worse when she starts school.

I worry that if I want to progress further I need to start giving more of my time (which I really don’t have alongside doing a postgrad in my spare time).

In my experience, senior leaders work well above their contracted hours as standard. Do I need to sacrifice time with DD to get there? What’s your experience?

Mediumly senior accountant. Earn over £100k. Sometimes, yes. Probably on average a couple of extra hours a week. But huge flexibility (as all my team have, the mantra being ‘we’re all grown up professionals, we are trusted to get the job done’). At year end the odd weekend evening does happen but it’s not usual.

Big 4 on the other hand (which being fair very much got me my first role in industry). Let’s just say my hourly rate (at the same pay) went up about 30% when I moved into industry.

But does it though? When the redundancies come you could still be first out the door. I've seen this happen several times. Sadly I'm less naive these days about how employers behave. Your boss might love you, but the ones above them you are just a number.

@topcat2014 I do contract work, so we get paid lots more money but have no job security. It works both ways, though. If I don’t like a job, I can just leave. And we get new work by reputation, so it is important that we get the job done.

I'm sufficiently senior that no one is clocking my hours. There's give and take, I often log off early on a Friday but happily work longer hours mid week. If I need to go out to do a chore then I will.
I have a few team members who have school pickup hours and it's frankly annoying because between one doing drop off and another doing pickup, it does shorten the overlap of potential meeting time. As it's basically only 930 to 3pm. But we cope.

Yes sadly and I hate it. Contract says 8 hours a day including one hour for lunch. I work 9hrs in the office and and another 1.5hrs on the commute. When it's a busy period, I'm expected to do evenings and weekends too.

I’m paid well for the role that I do. But yes that means I often have some work to outside my contracted hours. However no one is checking my hours, as long as the work is done. So there is a little flexibility there.

I earn around £60k (which I think is high for me but isn’t Mumsnet high).

I don’t work extra hours. I claim back any that I have to do such as occasional late meetings to suit time zones etc.
When I earned half what I do now, the expectation was to be on call pretty much 24/7

Absolutely yes. But I’ve resigned

Absolutely.

Primary headteacher very regularly working 12- 14 hour days to turn around an inadequate school.

Some weeks, with governors meetings, parents evenings and other events I am in school from 7.30 until 22.00.

I live a 50 minute drive away too.

I'm committed to making a difference.

No. I am middle management, but on low six figures. I work my hours, in fact less than my hours as I can do the job with eyes closed.
I am accutely aware that the reason my career has stalled and I have not progressed further is the fact that I can not commit to networking events, I leave on time, I can not work full time in the office and often have to take emergency days and time off for various child related things.
I think when your kids are between 0 and 11 you have much less time to focus on work. Women I know that are in super high paying jobs, ie board level, senior leadership, have either got to the top before having kids or have a lot of home help, or a DH who is earning loads so they can afford a nanny while they progress.
You literally can not do it all, at once, on your own. You can do it in succession or with help or with money to support you.
I am starting to pick my career back up now my first is in secondary but still contemplating whether i stay WFH on a lower income or sacrifice to go back to the office. I think it will be the former for a few more years.

I also have that and it’s assumed I’d go on garden leave.
I don’t ask anyone in the team I manage to come to online meetings before 9.30. Lots of them do drop offs - but by the same measure, I expect the same thoughtfulness to not take the piss.
I am reasonable if there’s a reason for them to step out for an hour (assembly, appointment, sports day) and know that this reasonableness pays dividends in that people will log back on and do a few hours to repay (as I do)

I wasn’t senior but definitely worked more than the contracted hours - publishing you worked till the job was done. My father and sister are doctors - they’d laugh at the idea of sticking to their hours! My DH was a lawyer and averaged 50-60 hours a week easy.
In fact the only time I worked only the hours on my contract was when I worked at a big department store in sales.

I earn 200k and don’t work extra hours. I WFH and have a lot of flexibility so can do school runs etc.

I do however have to deliver results and that is what I’m measured on not on hours worked. I almost never work in the evening and I never work at weekends.

However, to reach this position I have had to work a lot of unpaid additional hours as I was climbing the ladder. I finally feel I’m now reaping the rewards of my efforts over the last 20 years.

65000 FTE 30 years in my profession. My current employer feels very strongly that we work contracted hours only. Any extra has to be justified and is given as TOIL.
Its a refreshing change from the norm and makes for a happy team.