With cost-saving still top of the agenda, and hiring plans being curtailed by skills shortages, new data from Robert Walters reveals how many Irish professionals are working extra hours just to keep up.
The research found that only 25% of professionals now say they adhere to the core hours at work, instead over a third (37%) are starting early or finishing late every day, while 38% 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 (54%). However, a further quarter reported working late to communicate with teams in different time zones.
As a general standard, many Irish 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.
Suzanne Feeney, Country Manager of Robert Walters Ireland comments: “Despite critical skills shortages impacting hiring plans in some areas, many employers still expect the same productivity and output, putting pressure on existing staff. Our research indicates that many Irish 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 53% of Irish professionals admit to checking emails whilst 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 a.m to manage busy inboxes. While 29% of professionals log back into their work emails by 10 p.m., and 20% do so on weekends as well. The study also found that the number of meetings held after 8 p.m. has increased by 16% year-on-year.
Suzanne 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’
When Robert Walters asked Irish employers how they were approaching skilled talent shortages, 45% replied with redistributing the work among staff, while 26% stated they were hiring less skilled professionals to help fill the gaps.
Indeed, these shortcuts are clearly being felt by existing staff, with 66% now describing their workload as ‘heavy’ and ‘demanding’.
Suzanne reflects: “Although numerous Irish employers are increasing hiring in 2025, skills shortages continue to leave many crucial positions unoccupied, leaving existing staff to pick up extra tasks and projects just to maintain growth. With so many identifying their workloads as heavy or demanding, it’s only a matter of time before this escalates into widespread burnout.”
Reclaiming the Working Day
When asked about different strategies employers could implement to help staff avoid overworking, 43% of Irish workers agreed that they’d like their office to trial ‘power hours’ – allocating specific blocks off time for quiet, interruption-free working to promote concentration and help boost productivity in the office.
Suzanne 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 skills shortages – 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.”