We're all working a lot these days, with many Americans spending far more time in the office than their counterparts did 20 or 30 years ago. According to a 2008 Harvard Business School study, 94 percent of the business executives in America were working more than 50 hours a week, and more than half were working 65 hours a week.
That's a big difference from a generation ago. According to an article in this week's New Yorker, 30 years ago, the worst-paid workers were much more likely to work longer hours than the best-paid workers. Now that's flipped around: A 2006 study found that the best-paid people were twice as likely to work long hours as the worst paid.
But is the trend reversing? Many big banks are trying to get their employees to cut back on their hours. Bank of America Merrill Lynch has told its analysts they should have at least four weekend days off a month; Credit Suisse told its analysts not to come to the office at all on Saturdays. Goldman Sachs told its analysts they should be working no more than 70 or 75 hours a week; if that still sounds like a lot, consider that one study found such employees often put in 120-hour weeks.
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