Workers in Wales gave their employers £819 million of free labour in 2017 by doing unpaid overtime, according to new analysis of official statistics published today (Friday) by the TUC.
Today is the TUC’s 14th annual Work Your Proper Hours Day. Prior to this day, the average person doing unpaid overtime has effectively worked the year so far for free.
169,219 people in Wales put in an average of 6.6 hours a week in unpaid overtime during 2017. This averages £4,844 a year that each of those workers is losing out in pay.
To mark the day, the TUC is asking workers to take a proper lunch break and leave on time. And managers should consider how to move away from over-reliance on unpaid overtime.
Workers can check how much more they’d get each year if their overtime was paid at their usual rate at http://act.goingtowork.org.uk/page/content/unpaid-overtime.
Wales TUC Policy Officer Nisreen Mansour said:
“Lots of us are willing to put in a bit of extra time when it’s needed. But it’s a problem if it happens all the time. So today we’re saying to workers in Wales, make sure you take a proper lunch break and go home on time.
“We’re asking managers to leave on time too. Good bosses know that a long-hours culture doesn’t get good results. And the best way to lead is by example.
“If you’re worried about the long-hours culture where you work, get together with workmates and join a union. That’s the best way to get your voice heard, and stop your boss breaking the rules.”
The TUC analysis also found that while public sector employees make up a quarter (25%) of all employees, they account for more than a third (39%) of all unpaid overtime.
Nisreen Mansour added:
“Public sector workers are more likely to work extra hours unpaid. It’s a mark of how dedicated our public servants are – and it’s kept our services in Wales running through years of funding cuts from Westminster.
“But public service workers have also had eight years of real pay cuts, so they are being forced to do more for less. It’s time the UK government gave them the fully-funded pay rise they have earned by fairly funding the Welsh Government.”
Table 1 – Unpaid overtime by region and value
Nation / region |
Number working unpaid overtime |
Proportion working unpaid overtime |
Average weekly hours of unpaid overtime |
Average gross hourly pay |
Total value per week (£000s) |
Total value per year (£m) |
Annual value per worker |
North East |
151,039 |
15.1% |
7.6 |
£14.51 |
16,791 |
873 |
£5,705 |
North West |
467,517 |
16.7% |
7.6 |
£14.84 |
53,019 |
2,757 |
£5,897 |
Yorks and Humber |
372,786 |
17.7% |
7.6 |
£14.30 |
40,440 |
2,103 |
£5,641 |
East Midlands |
353,097 |
19.8% |
7.6 |
£14.33 |
38,312 |
1,992 |
£5,642 |
West Midlands |
364,995 |
16.7% |
7.8 |
£14.91 |
42,637 |
2,217 |
£6,074 |
Eastern |
499,038 |
20.6% |
7.5 |
£15.50 |
57,874 |
3,009 |
£6,074 |
London |
879,376 |
24.8% |
7.6 |
£21.78 |
146,208 |
7,603 |
£8,646 |
South East |
835,359 |
23.1% |
7.3 |
£16.75 |
102,298 |
5,320 |
£6,368 |
South West |
426,882 |
20.4% |
7.3 |
£14.81 |
45,995 |
2,392 |
£5,603 |
Wales |
169,219 |
16.3% |
6.6 |
£14.12 |
15,762 |
819 |
£4,844 |
Scotland |
381,922 |
17.5% |
6.9 |
£15.71 |
41,404 |
2,153 |
£5,637 |
Northern Ireland |
81,400 |
12.6% |
7.0 |
£14.13 |
7,998 |
415 |
£5,109 |
UK |
4,984,630 |
19.6% |
7.4 |
£16.20 |
600,514 |
31,227 |
£6,265 |
Table 2 – Unpaid overtime for occupations with longest average unpaid hours (UK)
Occupation |
Number employees working unpaid overtime |
Per cent working unpaid overtime |
Average unpaid hours |
Chief Executives |
22,993 |
25.5% |
14.1 |
Teaching and educational professionals |
757,290 |
53.1% |
12.5 |
Legal professionals |
60,593 |
45.0% |
9.6 |
Production managers |
125,519 |
32.8% |
9.5 |
Functional managers* |
335,742 |
45.1% |
8.8 |
Transport and logistics managers |
52,940 |
39.3% |
8.6 |
Welfare professionals |
61,063 |
32.3% |
8.6 |
hospitality and leisure managers |
39,471 |
20.8% |
8.6 |
Finance institution managers |
36,525 |
39.5% |
8.2 |
Quality and regulatory professionals |
44,844 |
33.9% |
8.1 |
Source: the TUC’s analysis used unpublished ONS data from the Labour Force Survey (July-September 2017) and the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (2017).
*Functional managers: financial managers, marketing and sales directors, purchasing managers, advertising and public relations directors, human resource managers, IT managers.
Key UK findings