How many hours do you work? Poll results/discussion

Jerryuk

Martin, if you wanted to see how many people it affects wouldn't it have been a good idea to have the poll cut-off point at 48 rather than 45?

I never work less than my contracted 40 hour week, no overtime. How much over depends on where I'm working that week and what the task is. There is a "you will work any hours required" cause in our contracts.... :mad:

Jerry

sdooley

for the people saying 'what if I want to work over and earn a little more' - that's all very well if you get paid for your overtime - most of us don't.

johnsandall

I'm fully with lkmc01 - I'm in my 3rd year of a 4 year degree and I would say that in an average week I'll be working upwards of 90 hours per week. As exams approach this has jumped to over 100 hours and I wouldn't be surprised if many others are doing the same (many students simply sleep in the 24h library at the moment as it saves time spent going home!).

The reason that we're effectively being forced to pull out "all the stops" is that I know that if I get anything other than top marks I won't be able to find a graduate job for years to come (see this week's Money Moral Dilemma - this is a horrible truth for all students about to graduate and we continue to hear of the increasingly common horror stories from those in the year above who've graduated with a perfect degree from a perfect university and yet have now spent a year on the dole, or of graduate recruiters who've reduced their annual intake from 200 graduates to just 2). So not working is something we can't afford to be doing right now, and I can't see the EU being able to control how many hours a student studies!

So I'd be interested in differentiating between how many hours per week the students on this forum work for a degree that's probably worthless anyway? And what happens when the rest of the population is working 48 hour weeks yet you still have students making a choice between sleeping/eating properly or getting a good degree?

Be interested to know your thoughts,

John

JoolzS

teddyco wrote: »

A quote from the following BBC News article:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/7991616.stm
Some MEPs who propose a ban on longer hours cite health and safety grounds. But the opt-out doesn't affect people like airline pilots and lorry drivers who rightly have separate rules.

I'm thinking that the person who wrote this article needs to work more hours to actually understand the WTR. Lorry drivers aren't exempt (unfortunately, as my DH is one as our income will suffer badly if the full WTR comes into force). My DH loves his job - he would happily work 100 a week if it was allowed - I'd tend to restrict that to around 75 but the goverment wants to restrict that to 48 hours which means we no longer have enough money to pay our morgage *and* eat!

Julie

sarahbrand

I have a job with a large media company at the weekend, and work as a childminder during the week. If I was to lose either income, and at the moment some is being hit with the recession and parents being made redundant or losing hours, I would end up being declared bankrupt then totally lose my childminding business. I work approx 60 hours a week, to ensure that my famliy are provided for. Having 4 kids of my own they are expensive, one is wanting to become an airline pilot, another a marine biologist and another wants to swim for her country, the other although the eldest is not sure. All have different clubs to do ie swimming, air cadets etc to help them on their way. We, as a family, could not afford this without both my incomes, so the ruling would not only affect us now, but could seriously affect my childrens future aspirations!

earthmother

OK, so right now I'm a SAHM, so my current working hours are up for discussion another time


But when I was last in employment, I held down two jobs - my 'proper' salaried Mon-Fri 39 hours, and a further hourly agency job (with a major utilities supplier) of 26 hours at the weekend. I remember being told for that one 'you'll have to sign to say you're happy to work over the directive before we can get you started' - in other words, agree to do whatever hours we feel, or no job. I needed the money, so I signed, and for over a year did a combined 7 days a week and 65 hours (sometimes more as I had a half day on Fridays with my main job, so would end up called in for emergency cover at the second job).

At the same time my husband was warehousing for a supermarket - hourly rates, unsociable hours shifts, double shifts, 45 minute each way commute - and 3 months straight without a single day off between Christmas and Easter - again 'voluntarily', but necessary - and easily equalled if not surpassed my hours.

Both of us were on minimum wages - that year we both cleared £20,000 for the first, and only, time - so no worries about reaching 40% thresholds however hard we worked.

We would never have survived financially without the jobs, so in that respect I can understand those worried about their finances - but also, we barely survived physically or mentally with them, so I also can see why it is being introduced.

I think it is needed, but maybe as mentioned earlier, it needs to be a bit more thought out than just a blanket ban (which is going to be unworkable for many professions).

Tarry

08. Paid Hourly: 41 to 45 hours. - 2% (286 votes)

I tend to work 42.5 hours per week and I tend to work 6 days out of 7 (although got an easy week next week with no late nights and TWO days off). Most days I work until 10 in the evening and tomorrow I am working until midnight, but I am lucky as some other staff are working until 5am in the morning!