HRreview Header

Two out of three Brits suffer ‘Sunday night fear’

-

Two out of three brits suffer sunday night fear

British workers start worrying about the week ahead on Sunday afternoon – as new research reveals two in three suffer from anxiety dubbed the “Sunday night fear”*.

Unfinished tasks from the previous week, a nightmare commute and unbearable colleagues are the top three reasons for dreading Monday morning. And, one in five UK workers confessed they would ‘remove’ a particular colleague when quizzed on the one thing they would change in their job.

The results, from a survey of 2,000 UK workers, show most lose almost an entire day thinking about the week ahead rather than switching off and enjoying the whole weekend. This means if the average person wakes at 9am on Sunday, they only enjoy four hours of time not spent worrying about their job.

 

HRreview Logo

Get our essential daily HR news and updates.

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
Weekday HR updates. Unsubscribe anytime.
This field is hidden when viewing the form
This field is hidden when viewing the form
Optin_date
This field is hidden when viewing the form

 

 

That’s how it feels to Love Mondays

Of those surveyed, 97 per cent cited job satisfaction as an important factor to loving Mondays. The research reveals estate agents were the most satisfied with their jobs, along with those who work in creative industries.

Public sector workers came out as the least satisfied with their roles.

Flexible working was identified by 28 per cent of workers as the most important factor towards helping them enjoy Mondays again, followed by working from home (23 per cent) and having great colleagues (21 per cent).

Mark Rhodes, Marketing Director at reed.co.uk, comments,

For some, planning for the working week ahead can go a long way to improving the feeling of preparedness for Monday morning. But this shouldn’t come at the expense of enjoying the time off you are entitled to. Whether it’s colleagues, commutes or unfinished tasks dragging you down, no-one should feel recurring anxiety over returning to work. If you find yourself really dreading returning to work on Monday, it may be time to consider a new role.

Loving your job means something different to everyone, so really focus on what matters to you: whether it’s flexible working, achieving that long-awaited promotion, stepping up a pay grade, or simply working with colleagues who are pleasant and co-operative. If you can’t see it happening in your current role it might be time to make a change and banish the Sunday night fear once and for all.

*By Reed

Aphrodite is a creative writer and editor specialising in publishing and communications. She is passionate about undertaking projects in diverse sectors. She has written and edited copy for media as varied as social enterprise, art, fashion and education. She is at her most happy owning a project from its very conception, focusing on the client and project research in the first instance, and working closely with CEOs and Directors throughout the consultation process. Much of her work has focused on rebranding; messaging and tone of voice is one of her expertise, as is a distinctively unique writing style in my most of her creative projects. Her work is always driven by the versatility of language to galvanise image and to change perception, as it is by inspiring and being inspired by the wondrous diversity of people with whom paths she crosses cross!

Aphrodite has had a variety of high profile industry clients as a freelancer, and previously worked for a number of years as an Editor and Journalist for Prospects.ac.uk.

Aphrodite is also a professional painter.

Latest news

Jo Kansagra: HR builds the benefits strategy, but fails to use them

HR teams are often seen as the designers of employee well-being. They build the benefits strategy - but many of them rarely use it themselves.

Optimism rises among UK workers but retirement fears persist

UK workers feel more positive about work, health and finances, but concerns over retirement savings continue to drive stress and uncertainty.

Pay awards rise to 3.2% as employers balance caution with hiring pressures

UK pay rises tick up to 3.2% at the start of 2026 as employers balance wage pressures, hiring challenges and rising labour costs.

Unemployment rises to highest level in nearly five years as hiring slows

UK unemployment rises to 5.2% as redundancies increase and hiring slows, making it harder for jobseekers to secure roles.
- Advertisement -

Stop waiting for burnout. Build resilient teams now

Burnout prevention starts with structured review questions that build self-awareness, clarify shared responsibility and help managers spot problems early.

New London tribunal centre to open as backlog exceeds 66,000 cases

A new London tribunal centre will begin hearings as delays exceed 66,000 cases, with concerns over staffing levels and system capacity.

Must read

Deborah Lewis: The key requirements for any sort of engagement

It's not even one o'clock in the morning on...

James Uffindell: Competency-based interview questions

My team and I have recently reviewed over 480...
- Advertisement -

You might also likeRELATED
Recommended to you