The 40-hour work week in IT may be going the way of the 56K modem and back up tapes, according to a recent survey.

The survey, conducted by the IT Job Board, looked at how hard IT folks are working and the results probably won’t be news to most techs: More and more  IT pros are working extraordinarily long hours.

The survey found that 7.3% of respondents work between 60 and 75 hours average a week. That was nearly a third more than in the previous years when 4.8% told pollsters they were working these  extraordinary hours.

And these weren’t the hardest working folks in IT. A further 3.8% said they work more than 75 hours per week.  In 2008, only 2.4% were working that much. (For those who are counting, that’s a 58% increase in the numbers of folks working to the extreme.)

What’s fueling the work frenzy? Too much to do.

The survey found that 31.7% of IT pros pile on the added hours because of the volume of work that needs to be done in their organization.

Other common reasons: management expects it and there aren’t enough workers to do everything that needs to be done.

The survey found that virtually no one is doing more work because of promotions or  fat bonuses for doing more. As most workers know, raises and bonuses have been slashed in most companies.

This kind of overwork for little reward — save keeping your job — often leads to employee burnout and sub-par performance. The combination of long hours and little incentive can also crush morale in the workforce.

But the IT crowd is at least proving to be a stoic lot. The survey found that most IT workers (nearly 85%) have not complained to their supervisors about the extra workload.

This means their frustration is likely being internalized. Some of the survey’s data shows the overwork is taking its toll.

Over a third of survey respondents (37%) report that their health has suffered from overwork. More than half (66.5%), say they no longer have time for hobbies.

Even worse, 59.3% said they had no time for family and friends. Nearly half  (48.8%) forgo a social life.

About 25% said the the extra work scuttled a relationship and 11.7% reported that they can’t have long-term relationship because work takes up too much of their time and attention.

Isn’t vacation time a saving grace in all this? It should be, but 38.7% reported that their workload doesn’t give them any time to take a holiday.

Sound familiar?

For most IT pros, the scenario will sound all too real. Layoffs and hiring freezes result in fewer folks to do the same amount of work. When folks retire or leave their job for another, their position often goes unfilled, but their duties get spread out among those who are left behind.

Add a tight job market to the mix and you’ve got some pretty stressed, overstretched workers.

Most managers are caught in the middle: The senior execs want top-notch IT performance. The IT workers are drowning in a sea of projects and maintenance.

Getting creative by allowing flexible hours, telecommuting and task shifting is one way to keep the IT ship afloat. When you can’t reward the IT staff with money or other perks, loosening the reins and letting workers get the work done in their own way sometimes goes a long way toward relieving the strain and boosting morale.

Remember this: The recession will end someday and the job market will pick up. Workers who’ve been treated well in the bad times, will remember it and reward their managers and organizations with loyalty and hard work.

Those who weren’t? Well, let’s just say their response may be very different.

Any creative IT types out there have some ideas about how to make things better in these tough times?

Tags: IT job board, morale, overworked, stressed, survey, vacation. telecommuting, work week