Hong Kong ranks 35 out of 40 cities in terms of work-life balance, according to a study released on Kisi, a technology company.
On the bright side, the city is ranked higher than its Asian counterparts, such as Tokyo and Kuala Lampur, while Singapore ranks 32 out of 40.
The survey is designed to be a guideline for cities to benchmark their ability to support the fulfillment of residents’ lives by improving the aspects of life which help relieve work-related stress and intensity.
The 40 cities were finalized to including those known for attracting professionals and families for their work opportunities and diverse lifestyle offerings.
The survey is conducted to conclude each city’s overall work-life score, based on a series of factors related to the amount of time a person dedicates to their job—such as total working hours, commuting, and vacation days taken. Next, its aims to survey to what extent residents receive equal treatment, evaluating their access to state-funded health and welfare programs, as well as institutional support for gender equality and friendliness toward the LGBT+ community. Then, each city’s livability score is determined by examining citizens’ overall happiness, safety, and access to wellness and leisure venues—allowing us to assess whether their residents can enjoy their environment after office hours.
The result is an index of 20 factors determining the work-life balance of 40 cities worldwide, recognizing those who encourage a healthy balance both directly and indirectly through policies and urban infrastructure.
Top of the list for overall work-life balance were Helsinki, Munich and Oslo, while the bottom three were Kuala Lumpur, Tokyo and Buenos Aires.
Tokyo, Singapore, Washington, Kuala Lumpur and Houston are the top overworked cities in the ranking.
Hong Kong is being ranked the bottom in the factors of minimum vacations offered, and it performed the worst 5 out of all 40 countries in indicators including percentage of GDP on social spending, healthcare score, gender equality score, happiness score.
The full list of the 40 countries and their constituent Work-Life Balance scores could be viewed here.
