Commenting on TUC figures for Work Your Proper Hours Day, showing one in four public sector staff putting in unpaid overtime worth nearly £9 billion a year, Dave Prentis, UNISONÕs General Secretary, said:
ÒDespite giving away billions of pounds worth of work every year, for free, they are being rewarded with spending cuts, pay freezes and job losses.
ÒInstead of cutting jobs, employers should be looking to fill vacant posts and make sure they have enough staff to do the job, without forcing workers to put in extremely long hours.
ÒThese figures show that public sector staff regularly put in more unpaid working hours than those in the private sector, in some cases ÔextremeÕ overtime, of around 18 hours a week.
ÒThe pressure to perform, especially during times of economic crisis, leads to sinking morale, greater sickness rates and will cost employers in the long run.Ó