One in three office workers now regularly work from home on a weekend in a bid to catch up with their heavy workload it emerged yesterday.
Researchers have found millions of people are forced to check emails, answer calls or even start or finish projects on Saturday and Sundays in preparation for Monday morning. One in 10 Brits said that they constantly have to check work emails over the weekend.
It also emerged that the average weekend worker now devotes nearly four hours of their weekend to work issues according to the study by printer ink supplier Stinkyink.com.
Despite putting in the hours at home, only 17% get paid for slogging away at home over the weekends.
When your job starts encroaching on family time and is causing you to miss important family time it’s probably best to take stock and evaluate what’s imperative and what isn’t
Spokesman for Stinkyink.com
A spokesman for Stinkyink.com said: "Working extra hours at the weekend is becoming more the norm and sometimes it’s the only way that people can keep on top of their workloads. The workplace is very competitive and with the bleak economic climate it seems people will put in all the necessary hours to get their work done to hold on to their jobs.
"Modern technology makes it easy for us to constantly check emails and take phone calls when we’re spending time with the family. But there is a fine line between catching up on a few lose ends and work completely taking over your precious free time.’’
Worryingly a quarter of those surveyed said they often miss out on treasured time with their families due to work commitments. But over half of people said that if they didn’t work over the weekend they would be completely snowed under during the week.
Top 10 tasks for weekend workers
- Checking emails
- Replying to colleagues that have emailed
- Preparing for meetings
- Emailing customers / clients
- Running through presentations
- Taking phone calls from the boss
- Filing
- Taking calls from clients/customers
- Catching up on expenses claims
- General administrations duties
A third said they would be in the office until 7pm if they didn’t catch up on weekends. And a fearful one in 10 said that they would be reprimanded by their boss if they didn’t do additional work on Saturdays and Sundays.
A third of weekend workers prefer to work in the comfort of their own home, whereas 23 per cent head in to the office. Nearly half (43%) of employees said that it’s physically impossible to get through their work by just doing nine to five during the week.
And 28% said they are under pressure from their management to complete their pile of work on time. It’s no surprise then that half of the 3000 workers polled said they find it impossible to switch off when they get home from the office.
A quarter of people said they also get it in the ear from their other half if they spend too much of the time working – although a third said their partner understood the pressure they were under at work. Half of dedicated office staff has had to miss a family day out. Thirteen percent have missed a kids’ party and one in 10 have also missed their child in a school performance.
A spokesman for Stinkyink.com added: "Technology has made it possible to work at home with relative ease. And providing you have a laptop, phone and printer anything is possible from the comfort of your own home.
"Having said that, ensure you have all the right materials and aren’t caught short, such as running out of printer ink at the vital moment. So whether you are printing out slides and handouts for your Monday presentation, or a CV for the next job application, it pays to have a spare set of cartridges.
"But when your job starts encroaching on family time and is causing you to miss important family time it’s probably best to take stock and evaluate what’s imperative and what isn’t. It also emerged that 38% of employees said that having a company phone and laptop was more of a hindrance than a help as it means you are always ‘on call’."
