Australian men and women are working more and ‘playing’ less, with many saying they feel pressured to maintain a good work/life balance, according to a new study.
The latest AMP.NATSEM Income and Wealth report found that around 40 per cent of women and 30 per cent of men say they are often or always rushed or pressed for time. Not surprisingly, those people who have children say they feel the pressure more often than those without kids.
According to women, the main reason cause of this pressure is the task of balancing work and family (46%). This was closely followed by the demands of family (38%) and taking too much on (32%).
In contrast, while men are also most concerned about balancing their work and family lives (45%) they are more likely to feel pressured by work demands (39%) than by family commitments (22%).
The increased time pressure could be attributed to a reduction in free time. According to the survey Australian full-time weekly work hours have increased by almost three hours for men and two hours for women since 1985. We’re also starting work earlier, and finishing later, with around 30% of men and 11% of women starting work at 7am, and 17% of men and 14% of women working up to 7pm.
Speaking about the findings, AMP Financial Services Managing Director, Craig Meller, said: “Juggling competing work, family and individual commitments means we have to be careful time managers. But there are only 24 hours in a day, leaving many of us feeling like we’ve let someone, or even ourselves, down. This is especially the case for young working mothers, who seem to be the most time poor according to the report’s findings.”
Other key findings include:
- Men aged 25 – 54 are working the longest hours, with men in rural areas are working the longest of all at an average of 4.47 hrs per day
- People in Canberra on average earn the most but work the least number of hours per week
- Sydneysiders spend the most time travelling to work (5.42 hours per week), closely followed by people in Brisbane (5.0)
- Women spend more time shopping more than men, although as they age, and once retired, men’s shopping activity increases
- At all ages, men enjoy larger amounts of time for recreation and leisure (including playing sport, watching TV, surfing the web and talking on the phone), compared with women
- Women volunteer more of their time than men, and are slightly more active within their communities
