OVERTIME: workers are giving employers £23 billion worth of free work each year, say trade union campaigners


Solicitors are losing out on thousands of pounds a year because they are working for what amounts to an extra day a week without pay through unofficial overtime, it has emerged.

The statistics, which show that legal professionals work on average eight hours and six minutes a week without pay, came out following last week’s ‘Work your Proper Hours Day’, set up by the Trades Union Congress (TUC) to encourage employees to stick to their contracted hours. The average amount of unpaid overtime for all professions is seven hours and 18 minutes a week.


More than half of solicitors, barristers and judges are being short-changed to the tune of £200 a week – or £9,430 annually – because they are not being paid for arriving at work early or leaving late, the figures show. Working through lunch and taking work home also sees them lose out.


However, they are still better off than high-flying officials and managers, such as senior civil servants and chief executives, who work an extra ten hours a week and lose out on almost £19,000 annually.


The TUC calculates that overall, workers are giving their employers £23 billion of free work each year. General secretary Brendan Barber conceded that bosses themselves are often snowed under, but urged them to look at their policies and the potential impact on their workers. ‘The questions they should ask include: Is there more room for flexible working? Have people just got into the habit of long hours because they think that’s the only way to get on? Is your workplace culture fair to those with other commitments such as caring for children or elderly relatives? Are staff getting burnt out and stressed, with little chance to recharge their batteries?’


A spokeswoman for leading trade union firm Thompsons said it had comprehensive policies in place to ensure that its staff were not losing out, and had set up a human resources strategy group to look at new ideas. ‘We applaud the TUC campaign, as it has been one of our objectives to ensure that our staff have a proper work/life balance,’ she explained. ‘We have achieved this through policies such as having part-time partners, giving our staff an extra four days off at Christmas and having early closing before bank holidays.’


She said lawyers were often in a difficult position as they had to stick to deadlines, which meant putting in the extra time was unavoidable on occasions, but added that firms could compensate by allowing staff to leave early when they are not so busy. ‘You can build in the extra time off,’ she said.