Research carried out into the nation’s working habits found that teachers and engineers are at the top of the league when it comes to putting in overtime at work.
On average, staff in both professions work 6.2 hours of overtime every week. But while 55 per cent of engineers said they were not paid for working overtime, 77 per cent of teachers received no extra pay for the additional hours they worked.
Unpaid overtime is so common in the teaching profession that it is regarded as part of the job.
The study was conducted by recruitment agency Reed, which surveyed more than 1,500 people.
It reported that 59 per cent of teachers regularly stay late at work. Two-thirds (66 per cent) of the teachers attributed their extra hours to workload demands, while 14 per cent said their overtime was a result of staff shortages.
The research suggests that Britain’s total workforce clocks up £43 billion worth of unpaid overtime every year.
One in five employees works eight or more hours of overtime every week – the equivalent of an extra day a week.
More than two-thirds work almost four hours of overtime each week, the equivalent of 24 working days a year.
A Reed spokesperson said: “This is yet more evidence of how hard the UK works. The extent to which people are willing to go above and beyond in the name of getting the job done is a positive reflection of our attitude to work and testament to how much we value our jobs.
“This is great news for employers although businesses should always be cautious of becoming over-reliant on the heroic efforts of those members of staff who are always prepared and able to go the extra mile.”