Tax-free overtime promised a reward for extra effort, but the chamber treated it as a test of who would gain control over working hours. No won by a clear margin, with the self-selected online vote producing a lively debate rather than a settled consensus.
Yes voters framed the proposal as relief for people in working-class jobs who depend on overtime, arguing that “tax should not be something that discourages people from working more”. Others said “the state should reward work, not punishing it”, while some wanted broader changes to thresholds, allowances and the structure of income tax, with one conditional case insisting that overtime should carry proper wage and premium protections.
The floor’s most-respected argument was against the policy: “Scrapping tax on overtime rewards overwork instead of fixing wages.” Other No voices feared employers would push staff into longer hours “subsidised by the state”, reduce overtime premiums or recast ordinary hours as overtime; the Yes side was talking about incentives to work, while the No side was talking about who controls the incentive.
That suspicion made the proposal look less like a simple tax cut than a new opening for payroll games. Voters called it “too easy to game”, pointed to company structures, welfare costs and public-sector abuses, and questioned whether payroll departments could administer it; even the softer No case preferred a reduced rate to abolition.
The verdict was not against working longer hours so much as against making overtime the organising principle of the tax system.
21 Opinions
A lot of NHS clinical workers go sick during their core hours but then work overtime in the same week -so they get paid double. They should not be able to get away with paying no income tax as well. So, yes for private sector employees. No for public sector.
Impractical and too easy to game, which would lead to distortions which would be inefficient
YES But with a caviate or two.. The basic wage (1st 49hrs worked) should never below the current hourly/weekly living wage. Overtime should only be classed as any hours after the WTD of 49hrs basic hours have been worked, or whatever the current recommendation is. Overtime should only be payable at 1.5 times the basic wage Mon to Fri & double time for Sat & Sun hours worked.
Too complicated to administer. Every payroll department would find it hard to cope. Why incentivise overwork - better to incentivise work.
This could encourage the unscrupulous employer to reduce the very overtime premium that forms the incentive to work longer.
Your using your own time . If working 40 hours already then you have paid enough.!
This is a recipe for employers to reduce contractual hours to get more employees paid on overtime.
Thresholds should be raised. Income tax should either be a flat tax all allowances abolished - No tax bow say £20K and Treasury &HRMC reduced by 75% as well as other benefit doling depts. Or significantly more income is taxed lightly. Our system is not about securing optimum tax to govern it’s a Marxist construct where the act of collecting outweighs the amount collected. Envy & punishment for success.
No. Instead, we need strict and enforced laws about compensation for overtime. This policy would just encourage more employers to push their employees into overtime, subsidised by the state.
The current system means people on a flat pay rate earn a lower rate the more they work.