IT managers are working to many hours for little or no return, according to research released by the Chartered Management Institute.
According to the figures, part of a report entitled Quality of Working Life, 83 per cent of managers in the IT sector regularly work over their contracted hours, with the average manager working 1 hour and 18 minutes over contract each day, which adds up to 40 days per year, or 184 million days each year for the UK’s management population.
In addition 51 per cent of respondents believe that the UK’s long hours culture affects their productivity and 42 per cent argue that working excessively hits morale. A total of 58 per cent of IT managers also claimed the extra hours prevent them from developing their skills.
The research added that the average IT manager takes 3.5 days off sick each year, but for every day lost to illness, 11.5 days are given ‘free of charge’ to their employer.
Jo Causon, director, marketing and corporate affairs at the Chartered
Management Institute, says: “Many organisations focus on the cost of absence to
their organisations, yet are not addressing the root causes of absenteeism.
“Surely, in today’s results-driven environment, output is more important than
input, so two questions need to be answered; why are employers ignoring the
impact of long hours on the health and performance of their employees and what
responsibility are employees taking for how they manage themselves?”
Causon added: “The perpetual cycle of taking out costs in recent years has meant that most organisations are driven to use their assets – particularly their people – more intensively. Yet it is clearly having a negative effect and will create longer-term problems for organisations unless the UK’s long hours culture is kept in check.”
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