Researchers at a UK business insurance website found that almost 40 per cent of construction workers are planning to work on Christmas Day out of choice this year.

Unsurprisingly, the chance of overtime and extra pay was revealed as the main motivating factor.

As millions of individuals across the UK gear up to spend the upcoming Christmas and New Year celebrations with their loved ones away from their place of employment, a new survey has revealed the most common industries for workers to opt to work over the festive period, even if they are not required to.

The research, conducted by the team at www.constructaquote.com polled a total of 2,927 adults aged 18 and over. Each participant is currently employed in a in a full-time job (35+ hours a week) in the UK. For the purposes of validity and unbiased results, an even number of respondents were polled across the specified different industries.

Participants were initially asked if they were currently planning to work on either Christmas Eve, Christmas Day or New Year’s Day through choice this winter. The majority of individuals (52 per cent) admitted that they had already made the decision to work for at least one of these days, whilst 19 per cent were still unsure of their Christmas working plans, stating that whether or not they work is dependent on their remaining holiday allowance and their co-workers’ availability around the time.

Of the 52 per cent, the industries with the largest percentage of individuals choosing to work over Christmas and New Year emerged as follows:

When then asked to reveal why exactly they are planning on working over the Christmas period as opposed to taking a break and enjoying time with friends and family, the most common reasons were given as follows: