70% of Irish Professionals Work Longer Than Their Contracted Hours and Two-Thirds Feel Obligated to Do So

Infographic outlining the Survey findings is available here

Highlights of Morgan McKinley Working Hours Survey Ireland

• 7 in 10 professionals work longer than their contracted hours with at half of these working at least an extra hour a day every day.
• One-sixth of all workers work an extra three months a year more than they are contracted to.
• 75% of workers say their work-life balance is being impacted.
• Irish professionals 'switch off': Almost half (44%) of professional workers do not use their mobile devices for work after leaving the office.
• 60% feel they are more productive in the extra hours worked than in the normal work day.
• Over one-third of employers now offer 'working from home' as an option.

DUBLIN, Friday 31 October 2014: The 9 to 5 work day is long gone and professionals now are not only working longer than contracted to, but feel obligated to do so according to the Morgan McKinley Working Hours Survey Ireland 2014.

However, Irish professionals are good at 'switching off' with almost half refusing to use mobile devices for work when they leave the office. The Morgan McKinley survey also showed how the Irish work landscape is evolving with over one-third of workplaces offering 'working from home' as an option for employees.

The survey was conducted amongst employees of Morgan McKinley's clients across a variety of sectors including accounting & finance, financial services, tech, engineering, science and office support which are based across Ireland.

In general, the Irish work environment has utterly changed from the traditional working day and Irish professionals have learned to 'work hard then switch off' according to Morgan McKinley Ireland Chief Operations Officer, Karen O'Flaherty

"The days of turning up in the office at 9am and walking out the door at 5pm are long gone and the changed work environment is reflected not only in the hours professional are putting in but also in the working options provided by employers.

"As the Morgan McKinley Survey shows, over one-third of employers (36%) offer 'working from home' as an option while a huge number – 44% - offer flexible starting and finish times.

"For professional employees, 70% work longer than their contracted hours. Half of these work up to 5 hours more a week (or one hour a day) but the rest work at least an hour a day extra every single day.

"One in six of all professionals work at least 10 hours over their contracted hours a week. Over the course of a 48 week working year that means that these employees are working an extra three months more a year than they are contracted to.

"Many employees feel they don't have a choice in the matter with 63% saying they are obligated to work extra. Employers looking to retain and attract talent need to mindful of this, especially since three-quarters of professionals saying their work-life balance is affected by working extra.

"However, it can be said that Irish people have learnt how to 'work hard and switch off'. Three-fifths are more productive when they work past their contracted hours and almost half (44%) of professional workers do not use their mobile devices for work after leaving the office."

Ends

Further press information:

Mike Miley, MKC Communications | T: +353 1 703 8600 | E: mike@mkc.ie