Young working Brits tip the work-life balance

New figures today openly challenge the perception that the youth of today have never had it so good -

revealing the nation's young workers are working extremely long weeks and are having to let things slip in their home lives.

According to the American Express Insurance Services research, more than nine in ten young people are prone to let things slip because of working commitments and long hours (92%).

The findings question whether the health of young Britons work-life balance is in good shape.

Just under half (44%) of twenty-somethings complain they have no "me" time and this is compared to a quarter (26%) of the older generation (over fifties).

They are also the most likely to find it difficult to switch off - two in seven twenty-somethings (15%) who use mobile technology say they find it difficult to switch off from work in their free time.

At a time when these busy young workers are questioning their working priorities as a result of seeing the effects of the work life 'slog', American Express Insurances Services asked a GB representative sample of over 2,000 Brits what they find themselves to be too busy to do in their day to day lives as part of a wider probe into the busy lives of modern working Britain.

Exercise was the first thing to slip off the list for younger twenty somethings.

Nearly half said that their exercise regime stops when their working hours clock up.

The same applies to their pets as well since they are the most likely group to stop walking their dog if they are busy at work (13%).

Over ten per cent more young people than the national average say they don't have time to cook their meals from scratch because of work demands on their time (45% versus 34%).

Nearly a third admitted to being too busy to sort out their finances or even check their bank statements (31%) and the same amount said they couldn't spare the time to research things like pension schemes or plan for their financial future (31%).

Twenty-one per cent more young people than the national average said they had difficulty finding the time to keep in touch with their friends (50% versus 39%) and 42% said the same of arranging time to see their relatives or in-laws.

However, clearly the younger generation are keen to have peace of mind should the worst happen since the thing they were least likely to let slip in their home lives is renewing or updating their insurance cover (just 11%).

Chris Rolland, Head of American Express Insurance Services commented: "Young working Brits have a lot of pressures and face a lot of choices in today's busy working life.

The more choices they have, the less time they end up having.

That's why we offer much more than just a card.

In order to accommodate for busy Brits who often feel there are never enough hours in the day, we have made the insurance process as easy as possible.

For instance, our travel insurance product comes with personal assistance services and easy access online with an improved speedy claims process.".

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