A quick evening email, a weekend phone call, or checking agendas over breakfast might seem minor, but their effects run deeper than most realize. Research from Zilveren Kruis reveals that nearly half of employees feel overtime encroaching on their personal lives.
Overwork often leads to unhealthy habits: less exercise, poorer eating, and reduced sleep. It also strains social connections, with relationships suffering and contacts fading. Some 39% of employees feel guilty toward partners and loved ones due to less time together, rising to 44% for parents toward their children. Four in ten admit to snapping at kids more often because of work stress, while over a quarter feel they're failing as parents.
Yet why does it persist? One in three employees (30%) and nearly one in four managers (24%) see overtime as ingrained in company culture. Dutch workers average three extra hours weekly, with 80% not minding. Managers lead by example—or overdo it—clocking 6.5 hours overtime on average, more than double their teams'.
Over half of managers believe they model strong work-life balance, but only 34% of employees agree. While 75% of leaders say they support balance, just 49% of staff feel it. That's a 27-point perception gap. Nearly half of managers regularly check if employees juggle work and family well, yet only 22% of staff report these conversations—almost half say they're never asked. Overall, employees rate managers' leadership lower (57%) than leaders self-assess (82%).
Managers may underestimate their influence, prioritizing results and expecting availability beyond hours. Some 39% send work messages off-hours, and 30% anticipate replies. Nearly half (48%) expect employees to compensate for early departures, like for a sick child. Still, 50% of managers emphasize judging solely on performance, offering flexibility in theory.
