“Today is annual Go Home on Time Day which is a great way to make workplaces stop and take note that life shouldn’t revolve around work,” ACTU President  Ged Kearney says.

“Research by The Australia Institute shows that one in two workers do not spend as much time with their family as they would like.

 “Their research also suggests that in a workforce of 11.4 million people, about 6.8 million workers experience work that pollutes free time in any given week, while 1.75 million workers regularly have their free time infiltrated by work demands.

“This matches the outcomes of the ACTU’s Working Australia Census of 42,000 people, which found 41% of workers were contacted outside of work hours at least once a week. Three out of five worked additional hours each week, but half of them received no extra compensation for their overtime.

 “We often hear the word ‘flexibility’ banded around by employers when it comes to justifying invading their workers’ personal time via technology, but all too often the benefits of such flexibility stop with the bosses, while employees miss out.”

 Will you switch off and go home on time today?

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