Balancing work, personal life, and health is already a juggling act for most people.
Add to it a feeling of constantly being connected to work, and all of a sudden, a good work-life balance isn’t just something that’s nice to have.
It’s essential to our well-being.
How do people manage it?
We dove into the evolution of work-life balance and rounded up the best work-life balance statistics to find out.
Ready? Let’s dive in!
Top work-life balance statistics
- 66% of Americans don’t have work-life balance.
- 48% of Americans say they’re workaholics.
- 77% have experienced burnout at their workplaces.
- 94% of employees think work-life balance is important.
- 73% see work-life balance as a core factor when job searching, with 61% saying they wouldn’t accept a job if it impacted their work-life balance
- 48% would quit a job if it made it impossible for them to enjoy their life
- The country with the best work-life balance is Italy, where only 3% of employees work 50 hours or more each week, and the Ministry of Economy and Finance provides free care and entertainment for employees’ children. The US ranks 29th out of 41, with a work-life balance score of 5.2 due to long work hours and lack of parental leave policies.
What is work-life balance?
Work-life balance is all about finding harmony between work and personal time. It’s how people fulfill the demands of their jobs while prioritizing their lives away from the office.
The idea that work hours should be limited dates back to the late 1800s, when the work hours of women and children were restricted. And the concept has changed significantly over the years.
While people used to work far more than the standard 40 hours each week, they could truly disconnect when we left the office.
But with today’s technology, we’ve become a workforce that’s always connected. The lines between our personal and professional lives are more blurred than ever.
And even though 60% of employees worldwide have managed to strike a healthy work-life balance, it’s a challenge for most.
In fact, 33% work on Saturdays, and another 68% admit to working on vacation.
No wonder 77% of employees have experienced burnout while working their current job.
Now, that’s not to say that we don’t value it – the work-life balance statistics in the next section show we do!
How much do people value work-life balance?
94% of employees say work-life balance is important, and 73% consider it a core factor when choosing a job.
(Randstad)
Further, nearly half (45%) said they wouldn’t accept a job that didn’t offer accommodating hours.
The same study found that work-life balance is nearly as important as pay.
Although 22% of employees say work-life balance is the most important factor in choosing a new job, only 29% of employees would accept lower pay for it.
(Hays)
📉That’s down from 56% in 2022.
60% of professionals rate their work-life balance as “good” or “very good” – the highest since 2014.
(Hays)
For the most part, this number has steadily improved over the last decade.
It was lowest in 2014 (47%), but hasn’t dipped below 52% since 2020.
Here’s a quick look at the last few years:
- 2014: 47%
- 2015: 58%
- 2016: 57%
- 2017: 56%
- 2018: 55%
- 2019: 57%
- 2020: 52%
- 2021: 54%
- 2022: 59%
- 2023: 60%
43% of employees would like to change their working hours to improve work-life balance.
(Hays)
Others would prefer to alter their commute times (17%), stop working outside of regular hours (12%), get paid for overtime (11%), and change their office environment (8%).
48% of people would leave a job if it prevented them from enjoying their life.
(Randstad)
In fact, work-life balance is so important to employees that they’re more likely to quit because of a lack of it than they would over a toxic environment (34%).
Employees who are 18 to 24 years old are most likely to leave a job over work-life balance (58%), while those over 55 are the least likely (40%).
61% of people would not accept a job if it disrupted their work-life balance.
(Randstad)
That number is up from 58% in 2022.
72% of workers say remote work is essential to a job offer.
(Hubstaff)
That’s because 85% believe that a remote position offers a better work-life balance.
Importance of work-life balance statistics
63% of employees who have a good work-life balance are more willing to go above and beyond for their company.
(Qualtrics, TINYpulse)
They’re also 10% more likely to stay at their current job.
Believing they have a healthy work-life balance improves employee productivity by 21%.
(Inc.)
But that improvement doesn’t hinge on employees actually using their company’s work-life balance services. In reality, just knowing that they’re available is enough.
Employees who work 55 hours or more each week are 1.66 times more likely to be depressed.
(Marlee)
Even worse, they’re also nearly twice as likely (1.74 times) to struggle with anxiety.
Over two-thirds of people have seen their sleep patterns negatively impacted by issues in the workplace.
(Mental Health America)
In addition to sleep problems, poor work-life balance can affect digestion and mental health, especially among employees who work nights, weekends, or long shifts.
Over 75% of employees avoid taking time off for mental health, and 43% worry that disclosing a mental health condition would negatively impact them at work.
(Mental Health America, American Psychological Association, Ipsos, CertaPet)
Only 15% of workplaces offer mental health days, despite Americans facing an average of four poor mental health days each month.
Despite this, 39% have taken time off of work in the last year to deal with their mental health.
Work-life balance statistics in the US
Just 44% of American employees have a work-life balance, despite 69% calling it “very important.”
(TeamStage, YouGov)
66% say they don’t dedicate enough time to their personal lives, and 33% work over weekends and holidays.
Interestingly, the emphasis on work-life balance varies by the type of work you do.
For example, 71% of full-time workers say it’s important, compared to just 61% of part-time employees.
And, maybe unsurprisingly, just 53% of chairpersons and 54% of CEOs say it’s very important.
60% have no boundaries between their personal and professional lives.
(Hubstaff, LendingTree, McKinsey)
But finding ways to implement them could make a huge difference – just ask the 30% of workers who are quiet quitters!
🔕Quiet quitters are the ones who do only the bare minimum.
And even though they’re three times as likely to be dissatisfied as more engaged employees, 57% have seen an improvement in their work-life balance.
But you can take a more appropriate approach to setting boundaries by taking your PTO, telling your boss what does and doesn’t work, and turning off your notifications outside of work hours.
48% of Americans consider themselves workaholics.
(New York Post)
Some of the most common behaviors of workaholics include:
- Putting work first (54%)
- Worrying about work on a non-work day (51%)
- Working on vacation (50%)
- Checking emails in the middle of the night (48%)
- Arriving first and leaving last (46%)
46% of employees leave vacation days on the table.
(Pew Research Center)
The biggest reason? They simply don’t feel like they need all of it (52%). 🤷
But they also have a fear of falling behind at work (49%), giving their colleagues extra work (43%), and losing their jobs or hurting their chances of advancement (35%).
And 12% say their manager actively discourages them from taking time off!
66% skip a meal each day because of working hours.
(Hubstaff, Forbes)
Typically, this happens because they want to finish work (23%), fear they won’t have enough time (22%), or have too many meetings to have lunch (20%).
40% of full-time employees work more than 50 hours each week.
(Mental Health America, World Health Organization)
Worse, 18% work 60 hours or more each week.
🚑Keeping such long hours increases your risk of having a stroke by 35% and dying from heart disease by 17%.
Work-life balance rankings by country
To determine the countries with the best work-life balance, the OECD analyzes how many hours employees work and spend on leisure or personal care, then scores it out of 10.
The countries with the most work-life balance are:
- Italy (9.4)
- Denmark (8.6)
- Norway (8.5)
- Spain (8.4)
- Netherlands (8.3)
🇮🇹What makes Italy so unique?
Only 3% of employees work 50 hours or more each week – far less than the index average of 10%.
Plus, the Ministry of Economy and Finance provides free care and entertainment for employees’ children.
On the other hand, those with the worst work-life balance are:
- Mexico (0.4)
- Colombia (0.6)
- Costa Rica (1.3)
- Turkey (2.5)
- Japan (3.4)
In Mexico, 27% of employees work more than 50 hours per week, which is more than double the index average of 10%.
That leaves about 13 hours for leisure and personal care.
Where does the US rank in work-life balance?
With a work-life balance score of 5.2, the US ranks 29 out of 41 on the index.
About 10% of full-time employees work more than 50 hours per week (which is in line with the average).
But certain policies bring the score down, including the lack of national paid parental leave and job security for new mothers. 🍼
Work-life balance and remote work
91% of employees choose to work remotely because they want to strike a better work-life balance.
(Hubstaff, Career Circle)
🧑💻Overall, remote workers are 22% happier than those who work in an office.
67% of people saw their work-life balance improve after they started working remotely.
(Hubstaff)
But that’s not always the case – remote workers are actually more likely to work 40 hours or more each week than in-person teams.
93% of remote workers say that working remotely has improved their mental health, and 48% say it’s reduced their stress levels.
(US Career Institute)
It also improves burnout (36%), reduces anxiety and depression (34%), and improves personal relationships (23%).
And it’s not just good for your mind – 90% say it’s also had a positive impact on their physical health. 💪
Work-life balance and gender and generation
78% of women say work-life balance is a crucial factor when they’re looking for a job.
(Statista)
On the other hand, just 67% of men feel the same.
During the pandemic, 34% of women were “always” or “very often” burnt out, compared to 26% of men.
(Gallup)
Interestingly, women who worked in a hybrid situation were more likely to experience burnout (38%) than those who worked exclusively at home (31%) or in the office (34%).
97% of women fear that asking for more flexible arrangements could harm their chances of a promotion.
(Deloitte)
Even if they do get more flexibility, 95% still feel that their workloads won’t be adjusted.
14% of women leave their jobs because of lack of flexibility, and 12% leave because there’s no work-life balance.
(Deloitte)
These things proved more important than advancement opportunities (10%) or a toxic workplace environment (11%).
Employees who are between the ages of 18 and 2 are 29% more prone to burnout than workers over the age of 30.
(Future Forum)
In total, 49% of 18- to 20-year-olds feel burnt out compared to 38% of workers over the age of 30.
43% of middle managers are at risk of burnout – more so than any other level of employee, even executives.
(Future Forum)
Here’s the full breakdown:
- Individual contributors: 40%
- Senior management: 37%
- Executives: 32%
Despite increasing their housework load by nearly 35% since 2003, men do $6,431 less of unpaid labor than women each year.
(Homeaglow)
On average, men do 19 minutes a day compared to women’s 49 minutes per day.
💰When you add it up, that’s $3,909 worth of unpaid labor per year done by men compared to $10,341 per year done by women.
Gen Z employees believe work-life balance to be more important than any other generation.
(deskbird)
They rate its importance at 9.04 out of 10, compared to 8.69 for millennials, 5.18 for Baby Boomers, and 7.93 for Gen X.
75% of millennials would consider leaving their remote or hybrid job if they were called back to the office full-time.
(Deloitte, CNBC)
An even bigger portion of Gen Z employees would do the same (77%).
This could pose a big problem to companies, 90% of whom say they’ll have a return-to-office plan in place by the end of 2024.
What is a reasonable work-life balance?
At the end of the day, it’s not about what the work-life balance statistics say.
It’s about what works for you.
Work-life balance for you could mean:
- Meeting work deadlines
- Feeling healthy, rested, and energized
- Having time for friends, hobbies, and self-care
- Unplugging after work
- Not being constantly stressed, burnt out, or overwhelmed
Want to learn to improve your work-life balance? Keep reading!
How can work-life balance be improved?
Believe it or not, you can improve your work-life balance, even if you have a chaotic schedule.
Before you do anything else, try setting a few boundaries. Think of them as the foundation of a healthier work-life balance.
That means intentionally blocking off personal time on your calendar, creating a communication schedule, limiting the amount of time you spend checking in on work, and learning to say no.
Don’t be afraid to ask for more flexibility in your work schedule, either! 📅
As for your workload? Learn to delegate, both at work and at home.
Outsourcing will help keep you from overcommitting and keep time free for relaxation and personal activities.
Finally, ask for help and support from your colleagues, friends, and family.
But finding work-life balance has to be a joint effort between employee and employer.
Employers can help by offering flexible scheduling, remote work options, mental health resources, and setting clear availability expectations to reduce burnout.
Managers can help as well, by offering regular check-ins to nip any workload issues in the bud before they become overwhelming.
In addition to mental health support, some companies offer things like financial counseling, legal assistance, travel stipends, unlimited PTO, and parenting courses.
📈And it pays off – remember, even just offering work-life balance services improves productivity by 21%.
Read more:
Must-Know Time Management Statistics & Facts
How to Plan Your Week for Success
How to Be More Productive Working from Home
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