Rising Trend of Unpaid Overtime Across the UK and Us: A Growing Concern for the Workforce.

In recent years, the culture of overtime work has become increasingly prevalent in the United Kingdom. Data reveals a significant trend among British employees working beyond their contracted hours. 

According to TUC’s research, in 2021, UK employers claimed approximately £27 billion in free labor due to employees working unpaid overtime. This situation affected about 3.8 million people, each contributing an average of 7.6 unpaid hours per week, equating to an average of £7,100 in unpaid wages per year. The data also highlighted an increase in unpaid overtime from 2020 to 2021, with a growing number of workers (about 427,000) undertaking unpaid overtime​​.

For the year 2019, TUC reported that more than 5 million UK workers contributed to over £35 billion worth of unpaid labor. The average unpaid overtime per person was 7.6 hours per week, which translates to an average loss of £6,828 annually from each worker’s pay packet​​.

In 2018, the scenario was similar, with more than 5 million people contributing to over £32 billion worth of unpaid labor, averaging 7.5 hours of unpaid overtime per week. This meant an average loss of £6,532 per worker per year​​.

Echoing these concerns, MSN recently shared an intriguing article featuring American overtime statistics from a new study, shedding light on how this trend transcends national boundaries and influences work culture globally.

The data reveals a collective surge of 46 billion unpaid overtime hours in 2023, dwarfing figures from the previous year. On average, workers are contributing an additional 4.5 hours per week for no compensation, totaling an extra 233 hours annually.

Residents of New Hampshire are bearing the brunt of this trend, reporting nearly 10 extra hours of unpaid overtime each week. Conversely, Montanans have seen a slight decrease in such hours.

The top 5 states which are working more unpaid overtime in 2023:

1. New Hampshire (9.9 more hours)
2. Iowa (7.6 more hours)
3. Alaska (7.4 more hours)
4. Utah (6.3 more hours)
5. North Carolina (6.1 more hours)

‌The 5 states with the smallest increases in unpaid overtime:

50. Montana (0.6 hours less)
51. Hawaii (0.9 more hours)
52. Idaho (1.9 more hours)
53. Maryland (2.1 more hours)
54. Arizona (2.7 more hours)
55. Arkansas (2.9 more hours)