Over 40% of Middle East professionals are taking on extra work hours - daily

Dubai: Only 15% of white-collar workers in the Middle East are sticking to their 'core hours', as more of them work longer every day to handle their tasks.

A new study finds that 41% of Middle East professionals are 'starting early or finishing late every day'. And another 45% say their work hours are entirely workload dependent.

The main reasons professionals cited for working beyond their usual office hours were catching up on work or meeting deadlines (62%), according to data from the consultancy Robert Walters.

"Just under a further quarter of them reported working late to communicate with teams in different time zones."

Employers on their part are fine with the extra hours being put in - and more frequently at that.

"Despite rising costs affecting hiring plans, many employers still expect the same productivity and output, putting pressure on existing staff," said Jason Grundy, Managing Director of Robert Walters Middle East.

"Our research indicates that many Middle East workers are working longer hours to meet demands or connect with colleagues in different time zones."

In the UAE, recent reports from S&P Global, which tracks the monthly PMI (Purchasing Managers Index) scores, suggest that private sector companies did slow down on new hiring. This was the case even when they took on new orders. Many recruitment industry sources suggest this could be a temporary drop in new job creation.

But, globally, there are reports of significant layoffs in sectors such as technology, while hiring of fresh graduates has also seen declines compared to recent years.

Employers were compensating for skilled talent shortages by redistributing work among staff (27% of respondents said this), while 32% stated they were hiring 'less skilled professionals to help fill the gaps'.

"These shortcuts are clearly being felt by existing staff, with 59% now describing their workload as ‘heavy’ and ‘demanding’."

“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,” said Grundy.

At many Gulf companies, longer work hours are part of the routine, whereas typical work hours are from 8am to 6pm. The average workweek would then be about 37.5 hours.

But more staff are clocking in longer hours as part of their daily routine.

In fact, professionals are 'even continuing to connect with work on holiday', says the Robert Walters' findings.

Also, Microsoft's Work Trend Index highlighted the trend of the 'infinite workday'.

The research found that 40% of professionals start checking their emails from 6am to manage busy inboxes.

And 29% of professionals log back into their work emails by 10pm, and 20% do so on weekends as well. The study also found that the number of meetings held after 8pm has increased by 16% year-on-year.