Overtime rules explained, as some Britons do £9,000 of UNPAID work every year

More than half of Britain’s workforce are working overtime every day as employees’ changing work patterns hit their work-life balance, new data shows.

Roughly one in five UK employees are working at least two hours over their contracted hours on a daily basis, while 51 per cent worked at least 30 minutes, research from insurance firm Canada Life claims. 

For those working unpaid overtime, this extra work adds up, and leaves employees out of pocket.

Almost a fifth of workers are workings two hours more than their contracted work day

Based on an average hourly wage of £17.40 per hour, Canada Life calculates that employees working an extra two hours per day, or 520 hours over a year, are missing out on £9,048 per year compared with if they had been paid for surpassing their contracted hours.

‘While overtime is an occasional necessity in many jobs, well-rested employees are key to a productive working environment,’ said Dan Crook, protection sales director at Canada Life. 

The onus, Crook added, is on employers to keep overtime in check.

‘Employers have an active role to play in encouraging – and enabling – their staff to take the time they need to rest and recover from illness and switch off entirely from the daily grind,’ he said.

‘Employers should create an environment where employees who find themselves consistently working overtime can speak to them about their concerns.’

‘A candid conversation with the boss is often all that is needed to reset workloads and agree priorities,’ Crook added.

The data comes alongside a shift in working habits following the pandemic, which has seen a mass shift towards remote and hybrid working, with 39 per cent of people working from home for at least part of the week, according to the Office for National Statistics.

This compares to just 12 per cent of respondents prior to the beginning of the pandemic.

While the rise in hybrid working has improved the work-life balance of many, freeing time for those with long commutes and cutting costs on childcare, others report that they feel they must always be reachable for their colleagues, even out of working hours.

‘The “always on” work culture we’ve adopted over the last few decades came to a head during the pandemic, as we set up home desks and new hybrid ways of working,’ Crook said.

‘But, while the novelty of being able to work from home has worn off, the “always on” hangover remains.’

A tenth of works said they can’t switch off from their jobs during downtime, while 16 per cent said they check their work emails and chats more regularly outside of work.

Even at work, employees are less focused on their own wellbeing, with 12 per cent taking fewer breaks and 11 per cent starting work earlier than they need to.

Coinciding with this, the ongoing cost of living crisis is also weighing on employees, with a quarter saying that tighter finances have made them more stressed about their jobs.

More than two thirds of workers have continued to work while being unwell, Canada Life said. Almost a fifth these said they were worried about the financial consequences of taking sick leave.

A tenth of employees said they are worried that they won’t get paid if they take time off, while one in 20 said they fear being made redundant.

This post first appeared on Dailymail.co.uk