Welcome to the 70-hour working week

Workers in the capital put in some of the longest shifts in Europe. From a lawyer to a trader to a chef, meet the well-hard Londoners for whom a 70-hour working week is just for starters…
p21 p20 Picture by Daniel Hambury. 13/11/12.Bar owner JJ Goodman pictured at Piccadilly Circus tube station.
Daniel Hambury
29 November 2012

Long day at the office? Accidentally referring to your workplace as “home”? You are not alone.

From the moment we get up and reach for our smartphones, to the last paranoid email check before finally clocking off and trying to get a few hours’ sleep, Londoners are working harder than ever. Recently there has been a significant rise in the number of employees putting in more than 48 hours a week — that’s at least nine hours a day — from 10 per cent of the population in the Nineties to 26 per cent now. Meanwhile, our European counterparts only muster an average of 40.3 hours of work a week. And as for France, when the French prime minister dared to suggest that his country’s traditional and beloved 35-hour-week rule could be extended un petit peu, he came under serious criticism from his comatose countrymen, who wouldn’t dream of juggling those hours. But somehow we seem to manage it and keep pushing past the 70-hour mark. What’s the secret? Four Londoners tell the Standard how they run their 14-hour days.

JJ GOODMAN, 28
Founder of The London Cocktail Club
Working day: 15 hours — 9am until midnight.
Wakes: Just before 9am. “I start my emails in bed — before I shower. I get through the stuff I can get through. If any requires time, I’ll put that one off.”
Routine: “It depends. You build your week around where you have to be and I do a lot of viewings as we’re looking for new bars. I don’t really have an office. A lot of my bars have internet, so I can do whatever I need to there. “We do training and development on Thursdays, we might have an event on a Sunday, and we’ll have to check reservations, with suppliers, new contracts. We’ll also be creating recipes or events or companies. On longer days, I’ll go on site tours, get behind the bar, and, depending on who is in town, I might take them out afterwards.”
Overall: “I’ve never done a 9-5. You take your days off when they come. I do loads of research from home, which is time-consuming. But everything we do is really fun and I don’t mind doing the hours. I’m not going to be doing them for ever.”
Downtime: “Sleep and eat … catch up with friends and drink. I do go to the cinema. A good film takes my mind off everything.”
Goes to bed: “Any time. But even if I’m working from home I won’t turn the laptop off until midnight — I might stick a movie on and crack on with more work.”
LCC will soon be launching a new dining concept with Raymond Blanc (londoncocktailclub.co.uk).
Victoria Stewart

SALLIANNE COCKERHAM, 44
Owns Southampton Row Solicitors litigation firm

Working day: 15-16 hours, 6am until 11pm.
Wakes: 5.30am, starts at home office in Putney by 6am. “My husband works for a bank and leaves the house before 6am so I’m always at my desk by then. On a good day I will have a break on a spinning bike early in the morning too. Then I head to my office in Holborn.”
Routine: “Each day is spent meeting clients, progressing cases, marketing, drafting, instructing counsel and attending court.”
Overall: “Anyone who runs their own business will know there is no such thing as ‘normal’ working hours. You never really close the door on work but clients like to know they can always get hold of you. It is hard to get that perfect balance.”
Downtime: “Planning ahead can be tricky; something always seems to crop up before we are due to go away. I am trying to be more disciplined about switching off at a certain point in the evening as it can be hard for those close to you if you are constantly distracted by business. “But I try to find the right balance — we have a home in Somerset where my husband and I spend our weekends. It’s lovely to think that no matter how hectic the week is, we have a retreat to go to where we instantly relax. Time passes much more slowly when you are gardening, cooking and socialising.”
Goes to bed: 10 to 11pm — “I rarely go out in the week, just get home, have supper with my husband, then return to work at my desk in Putney.”
Lucy Tobin

BEN SPALDING, 25
Head chef at John Salt

Working day: 15½ hours — 8.30am until midnight.
Wakes: 6.30am, and is in the kitchen by 8.30am. “I’ll do something with [my children] before getting the train into London. I’ll send emails, be thinking over things, planning my day mentally.”
Routine: “For the first couple of months I’ll be at the restaurant every day to get it up and running. First in, I’ll shake everyone’s hands and listen to everyone’s worries. “There’s so much happening in the kitchen — it’s constantly moving. Then I’ll do some prep and spend time writing for the cookbook. I’m mainly thinking about how to better what we’re doing. I’m always there every service and check every bit of food that goes out.”
Overall: “I’m always thinking business. But then I’m beyond obsessive about what I do. Being a chef — or for anyone doing these sorts of hours — it’s not healthy … you crave a balance. Since I’ve had children I’ve changed. Before, I used to work every minute but now … I want more to life. So I make my day as efficient as possible so that I can spend the minimal amount of time needed in the kitchen.”
Downtime: “I need quite a lot of time to sleep and then some to spend with my family. Email is the worst one of all and I always want to keep on top of it. But that’s something I’m going to stop. I may even consider turning my phone off. You just get so obsessed by it and you forget what’s important and the people around you.”
Goes to bed: Gets the midnight train to Folkestone, arrives 1.30am, in bed by 2-3.30am for three hours of sleep.
Ben Spalding at John Salt is open now (john-salt.com)
Victoria Stewart

PATRICK SHEPPARD, 24
Fixed Income trader at a North American investment bank

Working day: 14 hours, 6.30am until 8.30pm.
Wakes: 5.45am, checks emails on BlackBerry and gets on the Tube. “I have to be in the office at 6.30am ready for the London pre-market opening, so eat breakfast at my desk once I’m in.”
Routine: “I start by catching up on overnight events from the North American and Asian trading sessions. The rest of the day is often unpredictable. I answer emails and speak to the global salesforce to gauge any client and market demands, pricing up new trades, running any necessary analysis for the team and (hopefully) executing new deals. By 6.30pm London activity winds down as New York traders become active and trading coverage hands over. I spend the rest of the evening writing up end-of-day activity reports, summaries for the salesforce and finish any outstanding daily administration. “The job of trader is highly results-driven, so I am always thinking about how to deliver revenues and profits for my employer. However, it’s important to be alert and carefully manage risks.”
Overall: “Long hours are okay at the moment as you don’t know anything better — a lot of young people these days work long and hard for their pay. What makes the job worthwhile is the high salary and the rapid access to a lot of responsibility. The importance of the work gives it a hint of excitement. I probably won’t do it for ever, not because of the hours, as I will always be a hard worker, but just for the sake of trying something completely different.”
Downtime: “I go out for a meal or drinks with colleagues and friends straight after work to unwind. If I’m feeling fresh enough I drag myself to the gym in an attempt to offset the 14-hour sitdown at the office. Then when I get home I spend some time with my housemates doing absolutely nothing.”
Goes to bed: “I aim to get to bed by midnight so I can have six hours of beauty sleep.”
Susannah Butter

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