WORKERS in the north are doing nearly nine hours of overtime each week, with the majority not getting paid for it, figures have shown.
A survey by TotallyMoney.com found that 59.5 per cent of Northern Ireland employees undertook an average of 8.7 hours of overtime every week. This adds up to a massive 452 hours, or nearly three full weeks, each year.
In the UK as a whole, workers were putting in an average 8.4 hours of extra work per week and almost 65 per cent of those surveyed said they weren't getting a penny for it.
The fact that one third of workers are paid for this means many are essentially working for free until March 9 each year. Unsurprisingly 60 per cent of UK workers say they don’t have a good work-life balance.
Alarmingly, there is also a significant gap when it comes to gender. While 43 per cent of men said they were paid for their overtime, only 30 per cent of women claimed are financially compensated for their extra working hours.
When it comes to particular sectors, the survey found that teachers work an average of 6.5 hours overtime each week, with eight out of 10 not being paid.
In the healthcare sector, workers are putting in an extra 7.7 hours overtime each week, with more than half not being paid for these hours. The most frequent reason given for working these overtime hours is feeling overwhelmed by the amount of work.
Research by the Trade Union Congress has also revealed that the number of employees working longer hours had grown by 15 per cent in the last five years.
