Dive Brief:
- San Diego, Portland, Oregon, San Francisco, Minneapolis and New York are the top five cities for work-life balance, according to a new report. Kisi analyzed data on work intensity, institutional support and city livability.
- Kisi looked at a variety of metrics in those categories and scored each city for a broad range of factors including: hours worked per week, start and commute times, vacations days offered and taken, unemployment rates, paid parental leave, community safety and happiness, city stress, outdoor spaces, pollution levels, wellness/fitness, leisure, healthcare, access to mental healthcare and gender and LGBTQ equality.
- The listing also ranked the most overworked cities. In the U.S., Washington received the worst score followed by Houston, Atlanta, Seattle and Chicago.
Dive Insight:
Work-life balance is a stated top priority for job seekers and employees, but many employees haven't achieved it. A recent poll showed 60% of workers ages 18 to 34 said that stress on the job from poorly balanced personal versus professional lives affected their success at work. While some say there’s no such thing as work-life balance, it’s a pain point across the workforce, from hourly staff members to salaried.
Data suggests that workers who have a good work-life balance are more loyal to employers and more productive. In today’s tight labor market, that can mean lower attrition. Those who haven’t found the right balance report lower job satisfaction, which can lead to higher churn, recent surveys noted.
In cities that have a higher quotient, like San Francisco, talent acquisition and retention may be easier to achieve. With workers putting a premium on work-life balance, relocation could be one option job seekers would consider. A majority of workers say they are willing to move for the right job.
Another piece to the balance puzzle could be workplace flexibility. As more businesses offer their staff an opportunity to work remotely or juggle schedules to better accommodate their personal lives, job satisfaction may go up, along with work-life balance metrics.
