Most Middle East professionals 'work extra hours'

Zawya

15 hours ago

With cost-saving still top of the agenda, and hiring plans remaining curtailed, new Robert Walters' data reveals how professionals are working extra hours just to keep up.
The research found that only 13% of professionals now say they adhere to the core hours at work, instead over a third (41%) are starting early or finishing late every day, while 45% report their hours being workload dependent.
The main reasons professionals cited for working beyond their usual office hours were catching up on work or meeting deadlines (62%). Just under a further quarter of them reported working late to communicate with teams in different time zones.
As a general standard, many Middle East offices operate within the 8:00 am to 6:00 pm window. With a one-hour break for lunch, the average workweek sits at 37.5 hours.
Yet recent research from Perspectus found that UAE professionals work an average of seven extra hours per week, the equivalent of 3.5 days of unpaid overtime per month.
Jason Grundy, Managing Director of Robert Walters Middle East, comments: "Despite rising costs affecting hiring plans, many employers still expect the same productivity and output, putting pressure on existing staff. Our research indicates that many Middle East workers are working longer hours to meet demands or connect with colleagues in different time zones."
Pressure to be always-on
Professionals are even continuing to connect with work on holiday. Further Robert Walters' research found that 62% of UK professionals admit to checking emails while on annual leave as a way of reducing the backlog they'll return to.
Microsoft's Work Trend Index recently highlighted the evolving trend of the "infinite workday". The research showed that 40% of professionals worldwide start checking their emails from 6 am to manage busy inboxes. While 29% of professionals log back into their work emails by 10 pm, and 20% do so on weekends as well. The study also found that the number of meetings held after 8 pm has increased by 16% year-on-year.
Jason advises: 'To avoid professionals feeling pressured to clock-in at all hours, response times must be clarified through things like time-zone tagging in correspondence, implementing delayed sends and allocating specific, pre-agreed time slots for international calls.'
Employers doing 'more with Less'
Many Middle East employers' frugal approaches to headcounts are causing the issue to snowball. When Robert Walters asked employers how they were approaching skilled talent shortages, 27% replied with redistributing the work among staff, while 32% stated they were hiring less skilled professionals to help fill the gaps.
Indeed, these shortcuts are clearly being felt by existing staff, with 59% now describing their workload as 'heavy' and 'demanding'.
Jason reflects: 'As AI tools streamline certain job roles, higher costs create less disposable income to increase salaries and sustained global volatility leaves them cautious to compete for and commit to top talent.'
Additionally, Middle East employers are seeking low-cost alternatives such as offshoring certain roles or responsibilities. Earlier this year, Robert Walters Africa surveyed 500 global business leaders on the topic and found that access to skilled talent (41%) and retained earnings (39%) were some of the top reasons for doing so.
Jason explains: 'This increased pressure around cost has seen many Middle leaders to scope out oversees talent based in areas like Eastern Europe and South Africa. While resulting in important cost and productivity savings this can disrupt domestic offices, as coordinating communications for teams spread out across different time zones becomes difficult.'
Reclaiming the working day
When asked about different strategies employers could implement to help staff avoid overworking, 48% of UK workers agreed that they'd like their workplace to trial 'power hours' – allocating specific blocks of time for quiet, interruption-free working to promote concentration and help boost productivity in the office.
Jason concludes: 'Implementing 'power hours' may not fit every workplace, but it does underscore the importance of optimising the working day. If employers continue to tolerate a culture of silent overwork within their organisations – especially in the wake of hiring freezes – they risk not only burnout and attrition but also a collapse in morale and productivity.
'Addressing this means resetting expectations on working hours from the top. Not only should leaders openly acknowledge when responsibilities and remits are increased; clear protocols and expectations should be put in place to ensure staff are supported in prioritising tasks, setting expectations for deadlines and being transparent on their capacity.'