Do you think your working has become harder, that keeping a work-life balance has become more difficult? Well join the club - around the world 40 per cent of managers claim that they work over 40 hours a week, and their jobs are now harder than they were five years ago.
In fact, one third of full-time employees claim it is harder to manage their work and family lives, disclosed in a survey by EY - the umbrella organisation for the global giant you'll know better as Ernst & Young.
They wanted to know if people were satisfied with their jobs, what they were seeking, what they weren't getting, what would keep them settled. So they questioned 9700 full-time workers in the US, UK, Germany, Japan, China, Mexico, Brazil and India. The survey has just been released. Even though Australia wasn't on the list, I'd be surprised if our results would be much different.
For instance, one of the main complaints: "My salary has not increased much but my expenses have," shortly followed by "my responsibilities at work have increased." Then of course, there is the added burden at home, working long hours - and having children. Parents definitely found keeping the balance was hardest.
As Millennials (aged 18-35) move into positions of responsibility as parents, workers and managers, they nudge their sibling X Generation and push the Baby Boomers towards the drop-off end of the working scale. So attitudes to work and gender have changed. Would you believe that in the US 67 per cent of men were willing to change jobs to achieve a better work-life balance, against just 57 per cent of women?
Women are also much less willing to change a career, give up a promotion or move to another location for the sake of the family. If they find a good job they stick to it, regardless. So much for "following the husband around the country". He'd better be ready to follow her.
As our workforce gets younger, the old nine to five attitudes break down. Both employees and managers are looking for flexibility. With modern technology and communications, it is perfectly possible to work without being in the office. And one of the major demands from the survey was the desire to work flexibly - without losing your place on the promotions ladder.
Three quarters of the respondents called for this, and for workers and bosses who would support them in this. The present kafuffle over parental leave plays right to the heart of these modern attitudes. Australians want a sensibly designed, politics-free system of parental leave. The attitude is global.
One in five employees encouraged their spouse or partner to return to work after childbirth. These days, an affluent lifestyle is quite easy - if you both work. For a single supporting parent the weight can be crushing. No wonder 25 per cent of partners agreed not to quit or reduce hours at work. In fact, 23 per cent of workers decided not to have more children while one in five delayed them.
Mutual support was essential for marriage to survive. One in six workers blamed the economy for their divorce or separation.
This has seen the rise of what Americans call "The Daddy Track". Father stepping back from his career to raise the family. Karyn Twaronite is EY’s Diversity and Inclusiveness Officer, she sums up the findings: “This is example of how traditional gender roles are shifting, with men and women taking on more equitable roles.”
