Most freelancers declare themselves and do not want to give up their self-determination and flexibility. But for this they pay a high price, as a recent survey conducted by IT services firm Solcom revealed.

Most IT freelancers work more than 40 hours a week and often works more than five days a week. Half also has less than 20 days of vacation a year.

According to the survey, over half of the surveyed IT professionals work between 40 and 50 hours per week, one fifth even up to 60 hours and another 8% regularly smash past the 60 hours mark. Only19% of respondents work a typical 40-hour week.

When asked about their typical working week, less than 1% of respondents indicated that they can afford a working week of less than four days. The overwhelming majority must work at least five days a week. Nearly 21% indicated that they even work six days a week. Around 4% typically work seven days a week.

The constant commitment of freelancers is also reflected in the amount of holiday they take: half of freelance IT professionals declared that they have 20 days per year; 28% of respondents manage to secure an average of 20 to 30 vacation days, and only 22% can afford more than 30 days off a year.

Furthermore, most freelancers have the feeling to work significantly more than their permanent colleagues (70%). Only a quarter of respondents believe that their permanent counterparts have roughly equal working hours.

Around 43% of respondents declared that they are more exposed to stress, than permanent employees, due to their situation as freelancers. A third sees the stress level at the same level for the two categories of workers, while 26% feel less stressed than permanent workers. Respondents ranked the biggest stress factors as follows: uncertain future (53%), the high administrative and bureaucratic costs (50%), and travelling regularly for assignments (46%). Some respondents also worry about the need for continuous training (17%) and of course the long working hours (16%).