The Dangers of Working More Hours Than You're Paid For

Putting in extra hours on the job is a good thing, right? After all, in the American world world, most of us have learned that working long hours, putting in extra time, and going the extra distance is what it takes to get ahead. With the recent precariousness of the economy, many workers find themselves working harder and longer for less pay. There are some very good reasons why working more hours than you will ever be paid for is NOT a good approach to building a career:

Consider an employee who makes $15 an hour for a typical forty hour work week. If this person is typically putting in an extra fifteen or twenty hours each week that are "off the clock," the reality is that this individual actually makes $10 an hour. Would you take a job offer in your field for $10 an hour? Consider the actual value of your time, work, and those twenty hours spent on the job, unpaid, that you will never get back.

The fact is, individuals working long days and extra hours are not necessarily guaranteed that promotion or even the "promise" of keeping their jobs. The recent rash of layoffs and company closings has proven that it doesn't matter how dedicated, loyal and hard-working the staff is, if the income is not there and the company has to prune back or close, those 60-hour-a-week workers are STILL out of a job.

Morale and employee satisfaction drops drastically when employees are working long, hard hours without adequate compensation. It is hard to maintain a good feeling about your work, your coworkers and the company you work for when you know that you are being taken advantage of. Of course, a sense of teamwork and dedication to a job well done is important, but when workers are putting in more hours than they are being compensated for, resentment builds, the quality of work suffers, and there can actually be complaints filed and an increase in turnover rates.

Temporary increases in work load do happen and the occasional late night or unpaid overtime may not seem like a big deal. However, if long weeks and extra hours that are unpaid become the norm, it might be time to consider either intentionally cutting back and setting stronger work boundaries, or looking for a more reasonable job.

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