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Rabat – A recent survey by Bayt.com, a leading job-searching site in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, indicated that 52% of employees in the region have considered leaving their current jobs in search of a better work-life balance at least once during the past 12 months.
Around 23% of respondents said that they have neglected their personal and family obligations due to work, indicated the report, adding that 47% of employees work between 40 and 60 hours per week, while 9 out of 10 (86%) often have to work overtime or put in extra hours from home.
The survey titled “Work-Life Balance, Myth or Reality?” sought to explore the effects of work-life balance on employees’ performance, morale, and commitment in the MENA region. The report surveyed over 4,000 respondents from Morocco, Qatar, Lebanon, and Egypt, among other countries.
The report indicated that achieving a healthy balance between one’s career and personal life is high on MENA employees’ list of priorities. 60% of respondents said that their family is the main factor influencing their happiness, followed by their job (30%), their hobbies and extracurricular activities (7%), and friends and coworkers (3%).
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However, the report revealed that MENA employers play an “active role in the well-being of their employees,” with 84% of the respondents saying that their employers respect their time and work-personal life balance. In addition, 91% said that they have time to work out and take good care of their health.
Moreover, 92% of respondents said that they have “full control” of their working schedule, indicated the report, highlighting that “modern employees demand greater control over their lives and a bigger say in the structure of their jobs.”
The report emphasized that having an influence on one’s own working schedule could help create a better work-life balance, reduce stress and conflict, and improve performance.
Human Resources Director at Bayt.com Ola Haddad highlighted the importance of balancing work and personal life and the positive effect it would have on one’s performance at work.
“When employees feel a greater sense of control and ownership over their own lives, they tend to have better relationships with management,” she argued.
