1. Fromdedication tomedication?A study into the length of the working day and itsimpact on employee healthNovember 2011

2. From dedication to medication?This latest global business survey from Regus showsthat for most workers the working day now extendswell beyond the assumed eight hours. The reporthighlights the need for businesses to make sureworkload does not become work-overload in thequest for improved productivity, damaging employeesphysical and mental health.Over two fifths of workers take work home on more than three separate occasionsduring the working week, blurring the line between work-time and personal-time.On the other hand, remote workers appear to be substituting commuting time foradditional working time, increasing productivity without damaging their home life.The survey also analysed which types of workers were most likely to suffer fromover-work and which were more able to manage their time and carve out a suitablespace to devote to personal life and interest. Women, more likely to be part-timeor flexible workers, usually manage to work shorter hours than men, while remoteworkers tend to work longer than employees that have work from a fixed officelocation, suggesting that the benefit of a shorter commute often translates intohigher productivity. In addition to this, smaller businesses tend to work longer hours,probably motivated by the high impact that just one employee may have on thesuccess of the whole team. From dedication to medication? | November 2011 | Page 2 3. Management Summary Globallyalmosthalfofworkers(48%)workmorethanninehoursaday. A tenth of workers work over eleven hours but this proportion can be significantly higher depending on the country. In Brazil, for instance almost a fifth of workers spend eleven hours or more at work. TheChineseandBelgiansarethemostefficientatpackingtheirworkintoashorterdaywithonly5%and6%respectivelyworkinga60hourweek. Inadditiontolengthofworkingday,thesurveyalsoanalysedhowfrequently respondentstookworkhomewiththem,findingthat43%ofworkersglobally take home work more than three times a week. Inparticular,inSouthAfrica(58%),theUSA(56%)andtheNetherlands(51%), more than half of workers finish tasks off at home more than three times a week. Japanisthecountrywhereworkersareleastlikelytotakeworkhomeoverthreetimeseachweek(28%). Thesurveyalsolookedatwhetheranymajordifferencescouldbefound between the working hours of men and women and found that women are lesslikelytoregularlywork60hoursperweekthanmen. Only5%ofwomenwork60hourweekscomparedtomorethantwicethat (12%)formen,andwhile41%ofmenregularlyhave50hourweeks,only30% of women do. Women(32%)arealsolesslikelytotakeworkhometocompletemorethanthreetimesaweek,thanmen(48%).Howeverthismale:femaledifference is much less marked than with length of working, day suggesting that more women tend to take work home to correct the work-life imbalance than men who are inclined to just stay on in the office. InBrazil(20%),SouthAfrica,FranceandGermany(all16%)alargeproportionofmenwork60hoursperweek. Remoteworkerswerefoundtoworkconsiderablylongerhoursthanfixedoffice workers and to be more likely to take work home with them over three times aweek:59%comparedtoonly26%offixedofficeworkers. 14%ofremoteworkerssaytheiraverageworkingdayiselevenhoursorlongercomparedtoonly6%offixedofficeworkers. week:59%comparedtoonly26% of fixed office workers. InBrazilandFrancearoundafifthofremoteworkersregularlywork60hour weekscomparedtoChina,BelgiumandCanada,wherenon-remoteworkers areveryunlikelytoworkelevenormorehoursaday(3%).From dedication to medication? | November 2011 | Page 3 4. Management Summary Respondentsworkinginsmallercompaniesweremorelikelytotakeworkhomewiththem(48%)morethanthreetimesaweekthanthoseworkinginlargefirms(30%). Inparticular60%ofworkersinsmallfirmsintheUSAandSouthAfricatake tasks home to complete more than three times a week compared to only two fifths of respondents in larger companies. From dedication to medication? | November 2011 | Page 4 5. IntroductionDubbed the twenty-first century Black Death,1 stressfrom overwork is fast becoming the main causeof long-term sickness across the globe. As theeconomic downturn has increased stress levels2workers are reportedly becoming more anxious andmore prone to all the illnesses that stress can causesuch as cardio-vascular disease, stomach ulcers,high blood pressure and depression.3A recent British study found that longer working hours have a clear impact on cardiachealthwith67%ofpeoplethatworkedelevenhoursormoreadaylikelytosufferfrom a heart attack.4 Longer working hours are also linked to alcohol abuse.5InJapanthephenomenonofdeathbyoverwork(Karoshi)becamesuchaculturalproblemthatin1987theJapaneseMinistryofLabourbeganpublishingstatistics.ThemaincauseofKaroshiisinfactheartattackascausedbyextremestress.6 InChina,overworkcameunderthespotlightinearly2011afterthedeathofa25-yearoldwhite-collarworker,confirminga2010ChineseMedicalDoctorAssociationandChineseHospitalAssociationreportrevealingthatover60%ofwhite-collarworkersinlargeChinesecitiesriskdevelopingillnessescausedbyoverwork.7The damaging effect of stress is not limited to the single employee but hasrepercussions on the whole business, triggering a series of stress-related absencesas the workload of the absent person is transferred to other busy employees.Latest reports reveal that nearly two-fifths of employers have found that that stress-related absence has increased over the past year, and that workloads, managementstyle, non-work factors such as relationships and family, relationships at work andconsiderable organisational change/restructuring are among the top stress-causingfactors.8Homeandfamilyresponsibilitiesalsomakeitintothetopfivecausesofabsence indicating that the need for flexible working practices is still very strong.9 Asglobal economies emerge with difficulty from this last recession, businesses will betackling growing work-loads with reduced headcount and the pressure on existingemployees shows no sign of abating.1DailyMail,Stressis top cause of workplace sicknessandissowidespreaditsdubbedtheBlack Death of the 21st century,5thOctober2011;TheTimesofIndia,Officestress-21stcenturyBlack Death,5thOctober20112 CIPD,AbsenceManagement2011,October20113 NHSwebsite,TheComplicationsofStress(http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Stress/Pages/Complications.aspx)4 Reuters,WorkingLongHoursIsBadForYourHeart,4thMay20115 France24,Longworkhourslinkedtoalcoholabuse:study,9thAugust20116 PsychologyToday,HowWorkaholismMayBethePriceWePayforProductivity,17thApril20117 ChinaDaily,Womansdeathraisesdebateonoverwork,15thApril20118 CIPD9 CIPDFrom dedication to medication? | November 2011 | Page 5 6. Introduction TheCharteredInstituteofPersonnelDevelopmentalsoreportsthatoverthelast 12monthsintheUKalmosttwofifthsofbusinesseshavenoticedanincreasein mental health problems, particularly in firms that are anticipating redundancies in the next six months.10 Interestingly, levels of absence appeared to have decreased aspresenteeism,comingintoworkeventhoughill,hasbecomemorecommon, especiallyinorganisationsexpectingtoreduceheadcount.Presenteeismistypically a symptom of increased anxiety and can lead to illnesses becoming more serious as well as increasing risk of infection for colleagues.11 Employees in small businesses are reported to be less likely to take time off for illness than those working for larger organisations, significantly increasing the risk of illnesses becoming more serious and boosting stress levels.12 In Australia the Bibby SmallBusinessBarometerfound52%ofsmallbusinessownersfelttheyweremore stressed now than twelve months ago. In particular cash-flow was highlighted as the biggest worry.13 In addition to this, employees in smaller firms are more likely to be pronetopresenteeismassmallerteamsizemeansthatthesuccessofataskisfelt to rely more heavily on single workers.14 TheUSABureauofLaborstatisticsreportsthatin2010menworkedanaverage41 minutes more than women every day. Although this figure certainly masks the fact that women are more likely to be employed part-time than men, even when analyzing only those in full time employment women worked fewer hours than men.15 IntheOECDtheproportionofwomeninpaidworkiswelloverhalf(62%)with25% ofwomenworkingparttimecomparedtoonly6%ofmen.Inadditiontopaidwork, womenarereportedbytheOECDtotakeonagreatershareofunpaidworkwithin thehomeandthecommunity.InparticularMexicanandIndianwomenspend4.3-5 morehoursadayonunpaidworkthanmen,whileinNordiccountriesthedifference is only a little over one hour per day.16 Women, however, are reported to be twice as much at risk of developing heart disease from work stress than men.17 This is a particularly worrying fact when coupled with research reporting that women generally suffer more unreasonable amounts of stress at work than men being particularly worried by work-life balance, doing exciting work, having a respectful manager, being paid fairly and having a clear career path.1810CIPD11CIPD12CIPD13Bibby,Stresslevelsrise-butAustraliassmallbusinessownersremainoptimistic,25thJuly201114CIPD15AmericanBureauofLaborStatistics,AmericanTimeUseSurveySummary,22ndJune201116OECD,Cooking,CaringandVolunteering:unpaidworkaroundtheworld,25thFebruary201117TheTelegraph,Womenmoreatriskfromstressatwork,6thMay201018TheTimesofIndia,Womensuffermorestressatwork,July22nd2010From dedication to medication? | November 2011 | Page 6 7. IntroductionTo combat stress and in particular to redress the growing work-life imbalance,more and more companies are offering flexible and remote working arrangements.Inanotherrecentsurvey,forexample,USAemployeesrefertheypreferremoteworking to reduce their commute, achieve better work-life balance, be moreproductive(14%)andfinishworktheycantcompleteattheoffice.19TheCranfieldschoolofManagementintheUKconfirmsthatflexibleworkersreportincreasedjobsatisfaction and commitment while the majority of flexible worker managers identifiedeither an improvement in productivity.20 It would therefore seem that time wasted onlengthy and stressing commutes would be more productively employed by remoteworkers to pack more into the day without putting their health at risk.19Microsoft,Workwithoutwalls,201120CranfieldSchoolofManagement,Flexibleworkingandperformance,2009 From dedication to medication? | November 2011 | Page 7 8. The Regus Study As world economies brace for another difficult year ahead, the pressure on businesses and employees to remain successful and grow increases once more. As businesses strive for growth their workforce, heavily depleted in the recent downturn, will experience even greater pressure. Their productivity, dependent not only on total working hours but also on their health, will be vitally important as global economies enter the coming year. Inordertoprovideastateofthenationpictureofthepressurecurrentlyborneby workersglobally,Regushassurveyeditscontactsdatabaseofover1milliontoplevel professionals and business owners, asking them about the length of their average workingdayandhowfrequentlytheytakeworkhometocomplete.From dedication to medication? | November 2011 | Page 8 9. Long hours in theoffice and at home Globally, the Regus survey reports finds that two fifths of workers (38%) now work an average 50 hour week and 10% work a 60 hour week. Variations exist at the national level reflecting different working cultures; for example, although Americans are generally thought to work long hours, they are less likely to work a 60 hour week than the French, Japanese, Brazilians and Germans. Thisfinding,however,importantlyhighlightsthatproductivity,estimatedat$63,885of wealthperyeargeneratedbyeachUSAworkerandonly$54,609perFrenchworker is not directly proportional to the number of hours worked.21 The nations least likely toworka60hourweekaretheChineseandBelgians.On average my working day is eleven or more hours longBrazil Japan South Africa FranceGermany USAGlobal Average UK India Netherlands AustraliaMexicoCanada BelgiumChina 0%2% 4%6% 8% 10%12% 14%16% 18%21CBSNews,USWorkersWorldsmostproductive,11thFebruary2011 From dedication to medication? | November 2011 | Page 9 10. Long hours in theoffice and at homeTakingworkhometocompleteisaregularoccurrencewith43%ofworkerswhotaketaskshomemorethanthreetimesaweekandalmostaquarter(24%)whodosoatleastonceaweek.MorethanhalfofworkersinSouthAfrica,theUSAandtheNetherlandsdeclaretheytakeworkhomemorethanthreetimesaweekcomparedtolessthan30%ofJapanese,MexicanandChineseworkers,suggestinggreaterproductivity per hour or that desk time in the office is still a very important measure ofproductivity for management in these cultures.I take work home more than three times a week South AfricaUSA Netherlands Canada BelgiumFrance BrazilIndiaAustraliaGlobal Average UKGermany China MexicoJapan0%10% 20%30% 40% 50% 60% 70% From dedication to medication? | November 2011 | Page 10 11. WomenThe survey also looked at whether any majordifferences could be found between the working hoursof men and women and found that women are lesslikely to work 60 hour weeks than men.Only5%ofwomenwork60hourweeksormorecomparedtomorethantwicethat(12%)formen,andwhile41%ofmenwork50hourweeks,only30%ofwomendo.Japanprovesanexceptionwiththesameproportionoffemaleandmaleworkersworkinga60hourweek.ContrastisgreatestinBrazilwhere20%ofmaleworkersworkelevenhoursormoreadaycomparedwithonly4%ofwomen.On average my working day is eleven or more hours long BrazilSouth Africa France GermanyJapanUSAGlobal Average UKIndia MexicoAustraliaChinaBelgium0%5% 10%15%20% 25% MenWomen From dedication to medication? | November 2011 | Page 11 12. WomenWomen(32%)arealsolesslikelytotakeworkhometocompletemoreoverthreetimesaweekcomparedwithmen(48%),althoughthedifferencebetweenmenandwomen is much less marked than with length of working day suggesting that morewomen tend to take work home in an attempt to correct the work-life imbalance,while men are just as likely to stay on in the office.Over60%ofmaleworkersintheUSAandBelgiumtakeworkhomemorethanthreetimesaweek,whileintheUSA(45%)andSouthAfrica(55%),wherecommutetimesare usually longer due to large distances, women are also more likely to take workhome to finish.I take work home more than three times a weekBelgiumUSASouth AfricaNetherlandsCanada FranceAustralia BrazilGlobal Average UKIndia GermanyChina MexicoJapan0%10% 20% 30%40% 50% 60% 70% MenWomen From dedication to medication? | November 2011 | Page 12 13. Small businesses The survey found that respondents working for smaller companies were more likely to work a 60 hour week (11%) than their counterparts in large organisations (9%), but only marginally so. ThisdifferenceishigherinGermany,theUKandtheUSAandisunusuallyreversed intheNetherlandsandSouthAfrica. On average my working day is eleven or more hours longBrazil Gemany JapanFrance South Africa USA India Global AverageUKNetherlands AustraliaMexico Belgium China 0%5%10%15% 20%25%LargeSmallFrom dedication to medication? | November 2011 | Page 13 14. Small businesses Workers in small companies are far more likely on the other hand to take home worktofinishmorethanthreetimesaweek(48%)thanlargefirmemployees (29%)indicatingthatwhilethereisagreaterflexibilityaboutwhereworkiscompleted insmallercompanies,thepressuretomeettargetsishigher.Inparticular60% ofworkersinsmallfirmsintheUSAandSouthAfricatooktaskshometocomplete more than three times a week compared to only two fifths of respondents in larger companies. I take work home more than three times a week USASouth AfricaBelgiumNetherlands FranceCanada IndiaBrazil Australia Global Average GermanyUKChinaMexico Japan 0% 10% 20%30% 40% 50% 60% 70%LargeSmall From dedication to medication? | November 2011 | Page 14 15. Remote workers More than double the proportion of remote workers (14%) were found to work a 60 hour week compared to fixed office workers. This group was also more likely to work a 50 hour week (41%) than traditional workers (34%) indicating that remote workers are more likely to devote time saved commuting to finishing the days tasks. The ease with which they can return home from closer locations is likely to make these workers feel less pressure to finish their work within the eight hour day. In Brazil,FranceandGermanyaroundafifthofremoteworkerswillworkforeleven hoursormorecomparedtoChina,BelgiumandCanada,wherenon-remoteworkers areveryunlikelytoworkelevenormorehours(3%). On average I work eleven hours a day or moreBrazilFranceGermany South Africa Japan USANetherlandsUK Global Average India Belgium Canada AustraliaMexico China 0% 5%10% 15% 20%25%Remote workers Fixed office workers From dedication to medication? | November 2011 | Page 15 16. Remote workers Remoteworkersarealsofarmorelikelytotakeworkhomewiththemmorethan threetimesaweek;59%comparedtoonly26%offixedofficeworkers,suggesting that although this group is very committed there is a risk for remote workers to let their work-life expand into their personal time. Over three fifths of remote workers takeworkhometofinishintheUSA,theUK,France,Belgium,theNetherlands, SouthAfrica,AustraliaandCanadacomparedtolessthantwofifthsof traditional workers. I usually take home work to finish more than three times a week Belgium USA South Africa Canada AustraliaNetherlandsFranceUK Global AverageBrazilGermany India China JapanMexico 0%10% 20% 30% 40%50%60% 70% 80% 90%Remote workersFixed office workers From dedication to medication? | November 2011 | Page 16 17. Conclusion Global workers are staying behind in the office well beyond a 40 hour week and are also taking work home to complete more than three times a week blurring the line between work and personal life. The long-term effects of this work-overload could prove to be very damaging both in terms of worker health as well as productivity as businesses find that productive workers drive themselves too hard and develop more serious types of illness. This report provides businesses with a wake-up call to make sure their workers dedication does not become a disaster by undermining their physical and mental well-being. TheRegusreportrevealsthatwomen,oftenalsostrugglingtojuggleseveralhours of unpaid work in the home or the community, are more able to contain their working hours. The higher incidence of part-time and flexible working in this part of the population is likely to be a factor driving down total hours worked although the fact that women are also less likely to take work home to finish confirms a greater firmness in maintaining personal and work life separate. Workersinsmallbusinessesarealsomorelikelytoworka60hourweekandfar more likely to take work home to finish. This latter result reveals the added pressure in smaller environments not to let the team down and reflects the tendency in smaller firms to share responsibility more evenly across all staff. Although remote workers were found to generally work longer hours and be more likely to take work home with them, it is interesting to note that this is probably regardedasatrade-offforimprovedworkingconditionssuchasashorter commute,amoreconvenientlocationorflexiblehourarrangements.Remote workers are likely to devote the time saved on a long and stressful commute to finishing their tasks a significant productivity gain for employers. Flexible work arrangements are becoming increasingly popular as businesses learn to trust employees and become more accustomed to measuring productivity in terms other than time spent at the desk. By allowing employees the option to work from locations that are closer to home or to manage their time more independently, businesses improve the well-being of workers relieving the stress of a poor work-life balance, but they also gain more productive, committed and healthy staff. From dedication to medication? | November 2011 | Page 17 18. Global highlightsUK 43%ofUKworkerstaketaskshometofinishmorethanthreetimesaweek. 47%ofmenintheUKtakeworkhometofinishmorethanthreetimesa weekcomparedtoonly31%ofwomen.USA 56%ofUSAemployeestakehomeworkmorethanthreetimesaweek. 16%ofUSAremoteworkersworka60hourweekcomparedtoonly6% of fixed office workers.India 10%ofIndianmenworka60hourweekcomparedtoonly3%ofwomen. 53%ofIndianremoteworkerstaketaskshometofinishmorethanthree times a week.China Chineseworkersareamongtheleastlikelytoworka60hourweek(5%). 39%ofChinesementakehomeworktofinishmorethanthreetimesaweek comparedtoonly17%ofwomen.Brazil Brazilianworkersarethemostlikelytoworka60hourweek(17%). 20%ofBrazilianmenworka60hourweekcomparedtoonly4%ofwomen.Mexico 32%ofworkersinsmallbusinessesinMexicotakeworkhomemorethan three times a week. Only2%ofMexicanwomenworkelevenhourormoreadayonaverage.From dedication to medication? | November 2011 | Page 18 19. Global highlightsCanada 51%ofworkersinsmallbusinessesinCanadatakeworkhomemorethan three times a week. 68%ofCanadianremoteworkerstaketaskshometofinishmorethanthree times a week.Australia 50%ofmeninAustraliatakeworkhomemorethanthreetimesaweek comparedtoonly31%ofwomen. 10%ofremoteworkersinAustraliaworka60hourweekFrance 14%ofFrenchworkersworka60hourweek. 16%ofworkersinlargebusinessesinFranceworkelevenormorehours a day on average.Germany 41%ofGermanmentakeworkhometofinishmorethanthreetimes a week. 16%ofGermanmenworka60hourweekcomparedto6%ofwomen.Netherlands 51%ofworkersintheNetherlandstakehomeworktofinishmorethanthree times a week. 14%ofremoteworkersintheNetherlandsworka60hourweek.Belgium 57%ofsmallbusinessworkersinBelgiumtakehomeworktofinishmore than three times as week. Only3%offixedofficeworkersinBelgiumworkelevenormorehoursaday.From dedication to medication? | November 2011 | Page 19 20. Global highlightsS.Africa 14%ofSouthAfricanworkersworka60hourweek. 17%ofSouthAfricanremoteworkersworkelevenormorehoursaday.Japan 14%ofJapaneseworkersworka60hourweek,butonly28%takework home to finish more than three times a week. 37%ofJapaneseremoteworkerstakeworkhometofinishmorethanthree times a week.From dedication to medication? | November 2011 | Page 20 21. About RegusRegus is the worlds largest provider of flexibleworkplaces, with products and services ranging fromfully equipped offices to professional meeting rooms,business lounges and the worlds largest network ofvideo communication studios. Regus enables peopleto work their way, whether its from home, on the roador from an office.CustomerssuchasGoogle,GlaxoSmithKline,andNokiajoinhundredsofthousandsof growing small and medium businesses that benefit from outsourcing their officeandworkplaceneedstoRegus,allowingthemtofocusontheircoreactivities.Over900,000customersadaybenefitfromRegusfacilitiesspreadacrossaglobalfootprintof1,200locationsin550citiesand91countries,whichallowindividualsandcompaniestoworkwherever,howeverandwhenevertheywantto.ReguswasfoundedinBrussels,Belgiumin1989,isheadquarteredinLuxembourgandlistedontheLondonStockExchange.Formoreinformationpleasevisit:www.regus.comMethodologyOver12,000businessrespondentsfromtheRegusglobalcontactsdatabasespanning85countrieswereinterviewedduringAugust2011.TheRegusglobalcontactsdatabaseofover1millionbusiness-peopleworldwideishighlyrepresentative of business owners and senior managers across the globe.Respondentswereaskedawidevarietyofquestionsincludingonesabouttheireconomic performance and expectation, along with their usual working hours andhabits. The survey was managed and administered by the independent organisation,Mindmetrewww.mindmetre.co.uk. From dedication to medication? | November 2011 | Page 21 22. Whilst every effort has been taken to verify the accuracyof this information, Regus cannot accept any responsibilityor liability for reliance by any person on this report or any of theinformation, opinions or conclusions set out in this report.