Depending on who you ask, you will get varying answers to the question of whether working overtime is worth it or not.  The general consensus of opinion is negative, with research finding that working overtime has been linked to anxiety and depression. Yet clearly, not everyone who works overtime suffers either of these conditions… so what gives?

In pretty much every country in the world, workers are busy working overtime, whether it is staying at work longer, taking work home with them during the week and on weekends or even taking it on holidays with them.  When you work overtime, you are missing out on precious time you could be spending with family and friends or doing activities that make your life fulfilling and enjoyable and that contribute to your physical and mental health and wellbeing. Working overtime can also provide valuable extra income or flexible hours when you can take time off during the day when you need to, that is, provided you have a mutually satisfying agreement with your employer to enable that.

A business will most likely never ask you to stop doing overtime if they don’t have an agreement with you in place to compensate you, because the extra productivity they are getting at your expense costs them nothing!  The extra productivity helps them move towards their goals more quickly – they’re not about to complain.

The problem is what are you getting out of doing all that extra overtime?  What goals of your own are being worked towards or achieved, such as a promotion… payrise… bonus… etc.

Doing overtime is not a problem if it is something you rarely need to do and when you do it, you are compensated in some way.  It becomes a problem when you are doing it regularly for no more reward and your own goals are not being achieved.

Some people are required to work extra hours as part of a productivity agreement, but with this there is known  and mutually agreed compensation, however, what about those people who are doing overtime because they are overloaded with work and this is the only way they can keep on top of things? When this occurs constantly and there is no easing up, this will lead to anxiety and poor  health.  For your physical and emotional well-being, you need “time out” to relax and recharge your batteries. If you don’t, you will suffer burn out.  Not only is this detrimental to the individual, it will wreak havoc with their productivity at work.  In the long run, requiring an employee to continuously work overtime will backfire.

Some people are natural work horses and thrive on working extra hours in their career, regardless of whether the extra time is acknowledged and compensated for or not.  These are people who are also climbing a ladder of sorts, hoping for promotion, salary increases, time off, etc. or maybe they have other vested interests – either they are a part owner or shareholder.  Most other people are not programmed that way and need a more even work/life balance.  Even when compensated, too much overtime requirement is enough to lead to stress and loss of job satisfaction and productivity.

Those who are not particularly interested in their work in the first place are very likely to suffer anxiety and stresses when required to spend longer hours doing the very thing they dislike.  On the other hand, those who love what they do and maybe don’t even consider what they do “work”, are happy to put in the extra time with no ill effects.  Either way, it is only right that the benefits be mutual.

So, if a company wants to reach its goals quicker by getting more productivity out of its workforce and they are not prepared to put on extra staff and expect their existing staff to work overtime, what needs to be done? Compensating employees for extra productivity is a whole other article and it stands to reason that businesses must negotiate with their staff.  On an individual level, however, if an employee is suffering anxiety and stress having to do overtime, what do they need to do? 

A serious problem exists if employees are going into work early, working through breaks and staying back late on a regular basis because it is expected of them to do what it takes to get the job done. If this is rewarded and doesn’t happen every week and the employee is able to enjoy a healthy work/life balance for the majority of the time then there is no problem.  However, if this occurs regularly and the extra overtime isn’t putting a dent in your to-do list and you are not being recognized or rewarded, it’s time to speak up and review your situation. If you don’t, you are working for nothing.

When we start to arrive earlier, work through breaks, and stay back late, we often create a rod for our own back, especially if we say nothing.  You will be taken for granted and the company will think you are quite okay with what you are doing and may not even be aware you are working such long hours.  If you have created this habit for yourself, it is up to you to break it otherwise the extra time you are putting in will be expected from the company as opposed to being appreciated (and rewarded!)  Speak to your managers, explain you have created an unhealthy work/life balance for yourself and will be reverting to normal working hours in future, while making it clear they can still rely on you to meet deadlines and you will be there and put in the extra time when it is really needed – but not just as an everyday “habit”.

A common problem is getting management to notice that you are working overtime. After all, how can you expect any recognition and reward for doing overtime that only you know about? You can’t very well keep telling them how many long hours you are working without them wondering if you are cracking up!  You let them know subtly.  For example, if you hand over a report, when your manager says thanks, or if he makes a comment about how you made the deadline, just smile and casually say you stayed back to ensure its completion.  Another subtle way to announce the hours you are working is to send emails to your bosses from your work email while you are there working late.  This will prove what time you were at work because of the date/time of the email.  Likewise, respond to emails from your managers during these extra hours of overtime because again, it provides evidence by the date/time of your email.

If your overtime is a problem that needs your workload to be addressed by management, or you want to negotiate for a promotion or a payrise (or even an assistant to help you!), you will need more than subtle evidence to support your claims. If you are not required to use a timesheet, create your own record.  Keep note of the extra hours you work each day/week, and what you did during those hours – what you achieved. Companies will not be prepared to compensate you if you are just doing overtime to look impressive – they want to know you are really being productive for their benefit. You should not be doing daily overtime just to cover unimportant detail – overtime is for important and/or urgent activity. Keeping a record is also useful when review time comes around.

Now, if you are working overtime that is necessary and you are not being compensated for those extra hours, you must speak up – but do it in a non-aggressive, non-threatening manner.  Don’t barge into your boss’s office demanding extra pay “or else!”  With your overtime record in your hands, negotiate. If you are an unfortunate employee whose company refuses to reward you for the extra time and they give you the message if you don’t like it, leave… you have the option of looking for a new job of course, but also of just not working overtime in future.  You cannot be sacked for working the hours you are paid to work, and while some agreements actually do cover the requirement for some overtime when needed, the emphasis here is on “some overtime when needed” – not overtime every day for no extra compensation.  If productivity suffers and your workload begins to get behind, you have evidence that something is wrong and that you brought it to their attention. It is up to the company to negotiate with you if you are willing to work a certain number of extra hours to keep up, or whether the workload needs to be redistributed more evenly.

When you are seen to be working 50 hours a week instead of the 40 hours you may be hired to do, it doesn’t stand out to management who become used to seeing you do that and they may even think you’re happy with that because you’ve not spoken up.  You also run the risk of having management think you are not competent or capable of achieving what they may consider a reasonable workload in the hours they pay you to achieve it.  Instead of looking productive, they may see you as a time waster who has to work later because you’re not smart enough! When you do overtime on a regular basis, even when it probably isn’t really necessary, you diminish the effect of working overtime in terms of company recognition.

When you want management to see you as leadership material, going the extra mile when needed, will help you achieve that.  You don’t want “Oh, that’s Jack working late… it’s okay, he’s always here at that time.” You want “Oh, wow… look at Jack working late tonight. Isn’t he a reliable guy!”  It’s not fair, but that is often how it can pan out – when you do it every day, it becomes the norm… and ignored.

So in a nutshell, keep a record, let it be known subtly, and speak up and negotiate… because you deserve it.