Work?

Did you know that in a recent survey for One Plus One when people were asked to identify different issues causing concern in their relationship, work and work life balance came out as the second biggest worry. The work we do can be rewarding and stimulating but sometimes those work worries spill over into our daily lives. Balancing a work life and a home life can be very difficult. Below you will find some interesting facts about working.

How many people are working?

• In the second quarter of 2008, 16 million men and 13.6 million women were in employment in the UK. (1)

Are more women working now than in the past?

• Between 1971 and 2007, the percentage of working age women in employment has risen from 56% to 71%. (1)
• The percentage of men who think that it is a man’s job to earn money and a woman’s job to look after the home and family has fallen from 32% in 1989 to 17% in 2006. (2)

How many hours do people work?

• For women the largest group at 49% were also working between 31 and 45 hours per week. The second largest group at 29% were those working between 16 and 30 hours. (1)

How many people have flexible working?

• In 2008 more than one fifth of full-time employees and more than a quarter of part-time employees had some form of flexible working arrangement including, term time working, flexible hours, job sharing etc. (1)

How many parents work irregular hours?

• In 61% of working families one or both parents are employed outside regular 9 - 5 hours and 22% of working families contain a parent who works shifts. (Working families (2003), Shiftworking and Atypical Hours, www.workingfamilies.org.uk)

How many people are unemployed?

• The unemployment rate in the second quarter of 2008 was 5.4%. (1)

References

1. National Statistics. (2009). Social Trends 39. Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan. Crown copyright material is reproduced with the permission of the Controller of HMSO and the Queen's Printer for Scotland.
2. Duncan, S. & Phillips, M. (2008). New families? Tradition and change in modern relationships in Park, A. et al., eds British Social Attitudes: the 24th report 2007/2008. London: Sage, 2008.