With thanks to all who participated, here are your responses to my question … Are you a workaholic?

One in four consider yourselves workaholics

In this poll, I asked readers to consider whether you’re high performers, workaholics, or whether you’ve achieved a happy medium.

Some good news: 48% of those who participated consider themselves to be high performers, and 21.5% have achieved a happy medium. A full 26%, though, identified as workaholics. The rest of you? 4.5% chose my tongue in cheek option, “What’s the difference?”

How long is your work day?

27% of participants reported that workload or events see you working longer than the traditional work day almost daily. Only 6% rarely or never do so. More than half of all who participated reported that you and your employer’s cleaning and/or security staff know one another’s names and/or faces.

Next, I asked readers how many hours you typically spend in the office each day. While expectations can vary from one region or sector to another, 8% of respondents reported that a typical day typically sees you spending seven to eight hours daily in the office. Another 30% see somewhere between eight and a half and nine hours as the norm.

At the other end of the spectrum, 27% of respondents – very slightly higher percentage than those who self-identified as workaholics – said they typically spend 10 or more hours at the office each work day.

Do you also work from home?

28.5% of respondents have this well in hand, with 11.5% saying they never spend additional time working at home, and 17% saying they rarely do so. Another 15% may do so only once a quarter, but 27% of respondents reported that you also work at home almost daily.

What about checking and responding to business emails from home?

It’s the norm, for 42% of respondents – and this extends beyond the typical work week, to include weekends. 25% of you report that you rarely or never do so, and another 15% of respondents report that you’re checking such emails from home five days a week. The rest are somewhere in between the two extremes.

… and what about compensation for these long hours?

48% of participants reported that you are not compensated for working above and beyond the stated schedule. More than a third of participants are compensated in time off, but only 18.5% typically take that accrued time. What about financial compensation, you ask? That’s available to 15% of the readers who responded.

Have a look the data, below, for full details.

THE DATA

Note: Information below reflects the percentage of respondents who selected specific responses from multiple choice options.  In instances where more than one person offers similar responses to an open ended question, I typically cluster or paraphrase such responses rather than duplicating all of them.

 Do you consider yourself a high performer or a workaholic? 

• 48% of respondents: High performer
• 26% of respondents: Workaholic
• 21.5% of respondents: I’ve reached a happy medium
• 4.5% of respondents: What’s the difference? 

 How many hours (rounded up to the half hour) do you typically spend in the office each day?  

• 7 hours:  7% of respondents
• 7.5 hours:  3% of respondents
• 8 hours:  18% of respondents
• 8.5 hours: 13% of respondents
• 9 hours:  17% of respondents
• 9.5 hours: 15% of respondents
• 10 hours:  17% of respondents
• 10.5 hours: 3% of respondents
• 11 hours:  2% of respondents
• 11.5 hours: 3% of respondents
• 12 hours:  2% of respondents

How frequently do you also work from home? 

• 27% of respondents: Almost daily
• 17% of respondents: Rarely
• 15% of respondents: Once or twice a quarter
• 11.5% of respondents: Never
• 11.5% of respondents: Three to five days a month
• 6% of respondents: Once or twice a month
• 6% of respondents: 11 to 15 days a month
• 6% of respondents selected “Other”. Comments included the following.
  • I dont have VPN otherwise I would continue to work at home!
  • Currently our entire team works remotely. Our office will open next year.
  • I check emails only.

How frequently do you check and respond to business emails from home? 

• 42% of respondents: Every day of the week, including weekends
• 17% of respondents: Rarely
• 15% of respondents: Five days/nights a week
• 9% of respondents: Two days/nights a week
• 8% of respondents: Never
• 4% of respondents: One day/night a week
• 2% of respondents: Three days/nights a week
• 2% of respondents: Four nights weekly
• 2% of respondents selected “Other”.

How frequently do workload or events require that you work longer than the traditional work day? 

• 27% of respondents: Almost daily
• 19% of respondents: Once or twice a month
• 17% of respondents: Six to 10 days a month
• 13% of respondents: Once or twice a quarter
• 10% of respondents: 11 to 15 days a month
• 6% of respondents: Three to five days a month
• 4% of respondents: Rarely
• 2% of respondents: Never
• 2% of respondents: Twice a year

What’s the latest (rounded up to the next hour) you’ve ever worked in the evening? 

• 6% of respondents: 6:00 p.m.
• 10% of respondents: 7:00 p.m.
• 11% of respondents: 8:00 p.m.
• 19% of respondents: 9:00 p.m.
• 13% of respondents: 10:00 p.m.
• 10% of respondents: 11:00 p.m.
• 7.5% of respondents: 12:00 a.m.
• 4% of respondents: 1:00 a.m.
• 2% of respondents: 2:00 a.m.
• 7.5% of respondents: 3:00 a.m.
• 10% of respondents: It’s not so much that I work late into the evening as much as that I start very early in the morning and work up to 12 hours

Are you more likely to work into the evening because of workload or meetings/events? 

• 57% of respondents: Workload, including unexpected projects/situations
• 22.5% of respondents: Events
• 20.5% of respondents: Meetings

Are you compensated for hours worked above and beyond the stated schedule?  

• 48% of respondents: No
• 18.5% of respondents: Yes, I’m compensated in time off – and I take it
• 18.5% of respondents: Yes, I’m compensated in time off – but don’t usually actually take the accrued time off
• 15% of respondents: Yes, I’m financially compensated

 Do you and the evening cleaning staff and/or security staff know one another’s names/faces? 

• 55% of respondents: Yes
• 29% of respondents: No
• 10% of respondents: No, but because I arrive extra early, the early morning cleaning &/or security staff and I know one another
• 6% of respondents selected “Other”.  Three readers commented to the effect that this wasn’t applicable, that the cleaners work during the day or that there are no cleaning staff.