Singaporeans willing to work longer hours: survey
Most Singaporeans work overtime and many are willing to work even longer hours, according to a survey by recruitment firm Randstad.
Nearly half of Singaporeans, or 47 per cent, were working more than 44 hours per week, exceeding the limit recommended by the Ministry of Manpower, the survey released Monday (31 May) showed. Around 52 per cent of men said they work more than the stipulated 44 hours, compared to 41 per cent of women.
Despite wanting better work-life balance, half of the male respondents noted that they would be willing to work longer hours for equal or more pay, compared to 42 per cent of women.
When asked what motivated the respondents to work more, the top three reasons for them were more pay, career progression and personal development.
Jaya Dass, Country Director of Randstad Singapore, said the survey showed that Singaporeans are willing to sacrifice work-life balance for better pay and career progression.
“This could be representative of the current uncertain economic environment leading to employees wanting to work even harder than before. I expect to see the willingness to work overtime diminish in the longer term with a more bullish global and local economy,” she said.
Among the factors for choosing an employer, salary benefits and good work-life balance were the two most important for the respondents. Around 64 per cent of them said that they prefer some kind of variable work schedule.
The survey involved around 5,000 Singaporean respondents who are professionals from various industries and aged between 18 and 65.
