Time use study reveals Gen X and Y women are the busiest

Have you ever kept a diary of how you spend your time?

Well, if not, the Australian Bureau of Statistics has.

They have released their time use study, which measures the daily activities of 2,000 diverse households, and of those aged 15 years and over in those households, had them keep a diary over two days and account for all of their time.

This fascinating study reveals a lot about how people spend their time on work, domestic duties, recreation, and even sleep.

It is also a rare study, with the last one being released 15 years ago.

Work, sleep, and recreation

The three main activities that comprise people’s day are work, sleep, and recreation.

The average Australian is spending just under eight hours a day on employment-related activities, with 38% of employed people working more than eight hours.

The other big use of time is sleep.

This study showed that people, on average, are getting almost nine hours of sleep a night (eight hours and 42 minutes), with men getting slightly more sleep than women.

Within the day, on average, people are getting four and a half hours of recreation and leisure time.

It should be noted that this time-use study was conducted from November 2020 through to July 2021, during which people may have been in lockdown, which is why it can’t directly be compared to prior, similar studies.

While this study was conducted during a unique time in history, some of the habits displayed here are indicative of longer-term trends.

Although the Census showed that 21% of employed Australians were working from home during this period (compared to around 3-4% prior to the pandemic), work from home is something that will continue to be a part of the future of work, allowing people to reprioritise how they would have historically spent time commuting to and from their workplace.

Within recreation and leisure time, people are most likely to spend time on screens either watching TV and video, playing digital games, or engaging in hobbies and arts.

Comparison of men's and women’s time

Men are engaged in more paid work per week (eight hours and 13 minutes on average) than women (seven hours and 12 minutes).

When including domestic work (in an unpaid capacity), women are working more than an hour more than men, per day.

Men are doing approximately three hours of unpaid work per day, compared to women who are doing, on average, four and a half hours.

Women are doing more in almost every category of domestic work; domestic chores, food preparation, shopping, cleaning, and child-rearing work.

This means that when combining paid and unpaid labour, women are working longer hours than men.

Households often choose to divide their time by men doing paid work and women doing unpaid work.

This has resulted in women receiving slightly less time for sleep and recreation, and more for family and domestic responsibility.

Gen X and Y women are the busiest

When it comes to being pressed for time, it is 35 to 44 years old who are most likely to say they often or always feel rushed or pressed for time.

This means that people in this age group fall into the category of the busiest people in Australia.

This life stage is often characterised by juggling paid and unpaid work, childcare, home ownership, and the bills associated with each of these activities.

In summary, this life stage is where the cost of living is at its peak.

If people in this age bracket choose to raise children through this expensive time, it is likely to add stress as modern families deal with the cost of education and co-curricular activities.

If we divide further beyond age and look at males versus females, women in this age bracket are the busiest in Australia because more than half (55%) of them said that they are often or always rushed or pressed for time, compared to 43% of males.

About Mark McCrindle Mark McCrindle is principal of McCrindle and a social researcher, a demographer, futurist and social researcher with an international following. His passions lie in tracking emerging issues and researching social trends analysing customer segments. Find out more about McCrindle