By Ellie Clibbens

Copyright dailystar

Millennials are surrendering a staggering £34 billion worth of unpaid overtime each year, research has found. The poll of 2,000 working adults has uncovered that Millennials put in almost three extra hours weekly without compensation beyond their official duties. With the typical hourly rate sitting at £18.24, this translates to approximately £49 being given away. The findings also showed that the 18-44 age bracket logs the most additional hours – a figure that drops to just over two hours weekly for Baby Boomers. Ambition is a key motivator with 63 per cent of Millennials and 76 per cent of Gen Z under the impression that overtime is crucial to get ahead. The research revealed that 30 per cent of Gen Z and 22 per cent of Millennials experience pressure several times weekly, or even daily, to put in overtime to satisfy workplace demands. Yet this shortage of personal time is wreaking havoc on dining habits and nutrition, as 73 per cent confessed their employment negatively affects their food choices and eating patterns. The average working Millennial resorts to fast food or takeaways for evening meals twice weekly due to insufficient time for home cooking. George Taylor, founder at Frive, which commissioned the research, said: “Society has got the wrong end of the stick when it comes to younger generations. Millennials and Gen Z are actually working harder than anyone, but often at the expense of their health and happiness.” A third of Gen Z and Millennials are found to be spending three or four nights a week glued to their workstations, a habit only shared by 22 per cent of the overall population. Consequently, a third of Millennial employees regularly miss out on family dinners, with 19 per cent even missing a relative’s birthday. Shockingly, data from OnePoll.com reveals that five per cent admitted to missing the birth of their own child due to work commitments. Perhaps this high-stress lifestyle explains why 60 per cent of these generations would willingly accept a salary reduction in exchange for fewer working hours. Frive’s spokesperson added: “Work is important, but without balance, burnout is inevitable – something that I found out the hard way myself. And sacrificing on our nutrition and our health in the pursuit of success doesn’t help with this either. “Ultra-processed foods play a big part in our health – adolescents in the UK now get nearly two-thirds of their calories from UPFs in foods such as meal deals or takeaways. These foods are convenient in the short term but are linked to obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and even poor mental health. “That’s why we made it our mission to make eating well easy, quick and nutritious, giving people back the time and energy they need to thrive.”