Singapore — For the second year in a row, Singapore has been ranked the second most overworked city in the world, based on a study by tech company Kisi, entitled Cities For The Best Work-Life Balance 2020.
This is the second year that Kisi has held such a study, which compares data on work intensity, legislation, and livability. The study “reveals a ranking of cities based on their success in promoting work-life balance to their citizens, and how they have been impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic”.
In 2019, the top five most overworked cities in the world were Tokyo, Singapore, Washington, Kuala Lumpur and Houston.
This year, all the cities in the top five are in Asia: Hong Kong, Singapore, Seoul, Kuala Lumpur and Tokyo.
Conversely, for this year, the top 5 cities in Kisi’s index for having the best work-life balance are all in Europe. The top spot goes to Oslo (Norway); the second to Helsinki (Finland); the third to Copenhagen (Denmark); and the fourth and fifth places to Hamburg and Berlin (both in Germany).
Ten more cities were added to this year’s study, up from 40 in 2019.
Each of the 50 cities in the study was given marks based on Work Intensity, Society and Institutions, City Livability, and Covid-19’s impact and projected unemployment.
Under Work Intensity, the following are taken into consideration: Hours worked and commute/week, overworked population, minimum vacations offered (days), vacations taken (days), latest unemployment, multiple jobholders, paid parental leave (days).
As for Society and Institutions, these were the factors considered: Social spending, healthcare, access to mental healthcare, inclusivity and tolerance.
And, finally, for City Livability, here are the categories concerned: Affordability, happiness, culture and leisure, city safety and stress, outdoor spaces, air quality, and wellness and fitness.
Singapore’s overall ranking for this year is 41st, nine spots lower than coming in 32nd in 2019.
The country scored 64.7. In comparison, Oslo, at pole position, scored 100. And while the country got high marks for categories such as healthcare and access to mental healthcare, it scored poorly for items such as inclusivity and tolerance, social spending, and air quality.
According to Kisi, the index was “not designed to be a city livability index, nor is it intended to highlight the best cities to work in; instead, it is an indicator of a city’s ability to provide a healthy work-life balance for its residents, while providing opportunities to relieve work-related stress.
“To begin the study, a list of in-demand metropolises worldwide with sufficient, reliable, and relevant datasets were selected. Fifty cities were finalised to include those known for attracting professionals and families for their work opportunities and diverse lifestyle offerings, as well as those which frequently top livability indexes.” /TISG
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Singapore ranks as second most overworked city in the world: Study