Are you working on Christmas Day?

Almost one-in-10 small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) bosses expect to be working on Christmas Day.

But 11 per cent of SME bosses admit using work as an excuse not to see relatives at Christmas.

The findings, from a survey published by Powergen, show many of the UK’s 3.8 million SMEs never stop working - not even on Christmas Day, Boxing Day or New Year’s Day.

The results reveal a sober Christmas for many small business bosses, with 15 per cent saying they have avoided a festive tipple in case they needed to drive to their work premises.

An in-depth look at the Christmas working habits of our small business bosses shows that, for many, Christmas Day and Boxing Day mean business as usual:

• More than a quarter keep their business mobile phones switched on, in case they need to make or receive that all-important call;
  
• More than 20 per cent have changed their festive plans because of work;
  
• One-in-five has taken or made work-related calls;
  
• Almost 20 per cent have popped into their work premises to ensure lights were off and alarms set;
  
• Almost one-in-five has ‘caught up’ on paperwork;
  
• Nearly one-in-eight checked business emails.

The survey of 403 SMEs also revealed that men are more than twice as likely to work on Christmas Day as their female counterparts.