More proof (do we need it?) traditional offices not so hot

If you’re reading this, maybe you don’t need any more evidence that working in a traditional office can, despite whatever perks are included, have an awful lot of drawbacks. Maybe you already enjoy the flexibility of hours you set yourself and work conducted in a space of your choice.

But in case you need one more nudge over to the tipping point, a reason to, say, consider coworking, we’ve got it for you. Recently the New York Times published Working Long Hours, and Paying a Price by Kelley Holland. Among other findings, the story reports an interesting stat about who is working how many hours. While the average number of hours worked in a week hasn’t changed that much in the past couple of decades, between 1983 and 2002, there was a shift. Used to be the low salaried folks worked the longest hours. Now it’s the high salaried folks pulling the long shifts.

Holland writes a regular column about working and in the past has examined other connections between office work and negative fallout, such as obesity spurred by the sedentary life coupled with wolfing down unhealthy food at one’s desk. Now, with the too-many-hours-worked-in-a-week angle, she asks the question, “Is all work a bad thing?”

Turning to history, Holland points out that workers have always had an interest in shortening the workweek. She cites carpenters in Philadelphia in the 1700s who went on strike in hopes of moving to a ten-hour workday.

Not everyone is miserable with the long workweek, or at least they don’t think they are. Over 60% of those who reported working high stress gigs for more than 60 hours per week also reported enjoying this sort of thing.

The reporter theorizes that once you hit a certain point though, productivity drops. Sure, your body might be present, but is your mind wandering off to all the things you aren’t getting done on the home front?

Some employers, recognizing that long hours and multitasking are stretching workers too thin have taken measures to make things more pleasant, if not exactly lighten the workload. For example, opportunities to workout during the workday were provided in some cases, as was healthy food. Sprint even helped with getting prescriptions filled and planning trips.

You have to wonder though if, as well intentioned as these efforts are, if they aren’t just contributing to longer hours on the rat wheel. If employers help with the feeding and errand running, aren’t they possibly just freeing up workers’ time so that, yes, they’ll have more time to work?