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Workers in the North
West did over £2.7bn of unpaid overtime last year
WORKERS in the North West did more
than £2.7bn worth of unpaid overtime in 2015, according to new analysis
published by the TUC to mark its annual Work Your Proper Hours Day.
The TUC's analysis of official figures shows that more than 470,000 workers
in the region did unpaid overtime in 2015 worth, on average, £5,792 each.
Those working beyond their contracted hours did, on average, 7.9 hours of
unpaid overtime a week.
Work Your Proper Hours Day is the day when the average person who does
unpaid overtime would start to get paid if they did all their unpaid
overtime at the start of the year. To mark it, the TUC is calling on staff
to take a proper lunch break and leave work on time. Managers are also being
encouraged to lead by example and encourage their staff to work their proper
hours.
Public sector workers contributed £10.8 billion of unpaid overtime last
year. Public sector employees make up 25.7% of total employees but produce
33.6% of all unpaid overtime.
The most unpaid overtime is done by teachers and education professionals
(with more than ½ of them working an average of 11.9 hours unpaid every
week), followed by financial institution managers (11.2 hours), production
managers (10.3 hours), functional managers such as financial, marketing,
personnel managers (10.1 hours), and managers in health and care services
(9.9 hours).
People aged 40 to 44 are most likely to do unpaid overtime, with 26.9% in
this age group putting in unpaid hours compared to an average of 19.4%) for
all UK workers.
TUC Regional Secretary Lynn Collins said:- "Too many workplaces in the
North West tolerate a long hours culture. That is why we are calling on
employees to take a stand today on Work Your Proper Hours Day and take a
full lunch break and go home on time. We do not want to turn Britain
into a nation of clock watchers. Few people mind putting in extra effort
from time to time when it is needed, but it is too easy for extra time to be
taken for granted and expected day in day out. I would urge anyone
worried about a long hours culture in their workplace to join their union,
to make sure they are represented and their voices are heard."
The TUC has designed a calculator
online
where employees can enter their actual hours each week alongside the hours
they are contracted to do, plus their annual salary, to find out when their
unpaid overtime comes to an end and when they start being paid for the job
they are contracted to do.
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