Expats in Denmark enjoy a better work-life balance than those living in any other country, a new survey reveals.
According to the latest InterNations Expat Insider survey, expats working full time in Denmark have the shortest working week out of the featured countries. The survey reveals that expats in Denmark work just 39.7 hours a week on average, compared to the global average of 44.3 hours a week.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, then, 76 per cent of expats living in Denmark expressed satisfaction with their work-life balance, while 82 per cent stated they were satisfied with their working hours.
On a global scale, about three in five expats are satisfied with their work-life balance (60 per cent) as well as their working hours (61 per cent).
Interestingly, the findings that those who are the most satisfied with their work-life balance do not necessarily work significantly fewer hours. For example, the Czech Republic was found to have the fourth most satisfied expat workforce, despite the fact they tend to exceed the global average weekly working hours.
The survey did find, though, that expats living in the countries with a great work-life balance are often highly educated. in Denmark and Sweden (which ranked sixth on the list) the share of those holding a PhD is twice the global average (6 per cent vs 12 per cent).
Top ten countries for work life balance (average weekly working hours in brackets)
- Denmark (39.7 hours)
- Bahrain (42.9 hours)
- Norway (42.9 hours)
- Czech Republic (44.9 hours)
- New Zealand (42.3 hours)
- Sweden (42.3 hours)
- Costa Rica (44.3 hours)
- The Netherlands (42 hours)
- Oman (43.5 hours)
- Malta (43.9 hours)
Article published 30th May 2018