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by GorgeRonde 2539 days ago
I have no problem working twice as much as normal. What I want is to be paid twice as much (at least).
2 comments

Good for you. I’ve tried working twice as much once for ten days, and I am never doing that again. Not even for a one-off with one hundred thousand dollars/Euros/whatever after-tax overtime pay.
So are you fine with the idea that I get twice as much money and decision power than you, all things beyond worked hours being equal ?
This is a disingenuous argument.

Working twice the hours does not mean you are putting in twice the effort or getting twice the results. You're more likely to be a complete liability, because you're tired, unfocussed and not capable of thinking straight. Doing this for a week or more is a recipe for disaster. As for this leading to "more decision power" than people who chose not to indulge in such antics, I've yet to see this in any role I've been in in the last 20+ years. Most places would not see such behaviour as a positive, either for you or your place in the team and organisation.

The human body is not a machine. We can't work long hours without significant mental and physical impairment. I've worked 12 hour day and night shifts, and seen the effects on me and the others around me. Extreme tiredness and disrupted body clocks lead to careless, stupid and costly mistakes. We were never meant to work such gruelling hours. I've worked 36 hours straight in a research laboratory. I was destroyed for several days following, wiping out any benefit of the effort I'd put in. And I made a silly mistake 32 hours in, ruining the whole experiment, due to one moment of inattention after 12 hours straight intense focus. Individual "superhuman effort" does not beat effective planning and efficient use of time and teamworking. Which is why so few companies want to rely on primadonnas, and instead want reliable and predictable people who won't flake out.

Today, I work regular office hours. Work hard while I'm there, and start and leave bang on time each day. I'm much better for it in all respects. And if you don't want to get severe RSI and burnout, I'd suggest at least considering these points. I didn't until I was severely affected by both, and it was not at all fun.

Money stopped being a major concern after my first year in my first job. Quality of life is more important to me. Your mileage may vary.
I’m surprised at the number of comments saying they don’t work 60/80+ hours a week.

I thought this was just the industry norm now and was going to factor it into my salary when I start looking for a new job

Honestly, isn’t it safe To assume the company is underreporting the workload and instead calculate Salary at an average of 60 hours/week?

Depends which specific part of the industry you work in, perhaps.

The company I work for has set working hours, with some flexibility in start and finish times. But it's basically 8 hours per day, 40 per week.

What surprises me most, is that companies aren't limiting work hours to 40. And that people put up with working stupid hours. 80 hours would be utterly insane. Even 60 is ridiculous. The evidence shows that people don't get more done if the hours are increased further. But people do need a life outside work, and any more than that and you have zero time to yourself or your family, and that's going to be detrimental to your health and happiness. Why isn't there more pushback against it?

Officially I work 35h/w. A little less than 40k€. Senior level. Very efficient. I think my actual hourly pay is under the minimum wage. No overtime pay of course.