An AIA Group commissioned study queried more than 600 adults in Hong Kong about their lifestyle and work/life balance.
Overall, the study was conducted across 15 Asia Pacific countries and numbered over 10,000 people. Some of the countries involved, include China, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Korea, India, Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Australia, New Zealand and Sri Lanka.
Factors considered in the study included sleep deficit and stress level comparisons.
Tired workers
Hong Kong’s working population isn’t sleeping enough.
Based on a healthy average of eight hours per night, they averaged only 6.5 hours of sleep. The 1.5 hour sleep deficit is the highest of the 15 APAC countries surveyed.
It’s not like Hong Kongers don’t want a healthy amount of sleep, but it seems other factors in their lives are making it difficult.
Internet addiction
Surprisingly, the largest contributor to sleep deficit numbers for Hong Kongers is the amount of non-work time they spend on the internet.
On average they spend 3.7 hours of their time either on smartphones or other electronic devices. 64% of adults in Hong Kong admit to internet addiction.
Their time spent on the internet contributes to negative behaviors, in addition to lack of sleep. Diminished exercise time, poor posture and poor eating habits all result from the distraction of internet addiction.
Aside from a lack of sleep, internet addiction, not enough exercise, and poor eating habits, what else bedevils Hong Kong’s working adults?
Off-hours work expectations
Not only are Hong Kongers dealing with all the above dilemmas, roughly 70 percent are expected to be available for work calls/matters outside of office hours.
Working during off hours can be bad enough, but only 16 percent of those workers felt they had the tools necessary to competently/effectively accomplish their work tasks done during this time.
The results: High Stress levels
Tired, distracted, out-of-shape, overworked, under-equipped.
People with these symptoms are at a risk for high stress levels.
Not surprisingly, workers in Hong Kong rank the highest when it comes to stress. Of the APAC nations, Hong Kong rated 6.7 (out of 10). Other APAC countries averaged 6.2.
Such high stress levels can only make for disgruntled and inefficient workers. High stress can also lead to numerous other health issues such as depression, heart disease, cancer, and stroke.
As the study shows, health conditions for Hong Kong’s workers are not improving. They are deteriorating. Finding a solution to this dilemma will benefit business and worker alike.