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The Robert Half International research also suggests a trend toward increased accessibility of financial managers outside of the office.

Among the findings:

• In the UK, 78% of finance managers said they sometimes or always take take work phone calls or check their email in the evenings at home, although 42 per cent said they only did so if they had deadlines to meet.  One in five (22 per cent) said they switch off the minute they leave the office.
  
• Forty-five per cent of U.S. finance managers surveyed said their hours have increased over the last two years. Among those, two-thirds said they now work an additional five to 15 hours a week. By contrast, 43 per cent of UK managers said their working hours had not increased and 27 per cent said they had increased by 5 to 10 hours a week. 
• UK respondents cited working an average of 42.1 hours per week, more than the 40 hours the French reported but below the 42.2 hours worked in Germany, 43.8 hours in Italy and 47.1 hours in Japan.
• More than seven out of ten UK respondents (71 per cent) said that they don't want to think about work when they are on holiday. One in ten (11 per cent) said they could not relax unless they are in touch with the office.
  
• Nearly four out of 10 (39 per cent) of U.S. respondents said they sometimes or always take their laptops or PDAs with them on holiday, as compared to 16 per cent in Ireland, a country near the top of the list in hours worked. In the UK 31 per cent take their laptop or PDA on holiday.
• Only 32 per cent of U.S. practitioners said they never work weekends, versus 65 per cent in Spain and 51 per cent in New Zealand. One-quarter of U.S. financial professionals say they work three or more weekends each month.

The Working Hours: A Global Comparison report was based on a global survey conducted by an independent research firm and developed by Robert Half International, the world’s first and largest staffing services firm specializing in accounting and finance. The study includes responses from more than 2,200 financial managers across four continents, representing 17 countries.

Financial professionals from Europe and the Asia-Pacific region have experienced greater increase in working hours than their counterparts in North America. The growth in emerging markets such as China and Eastern Europe is seen as a driving factor in explaining this variance.

The majority of respondents from Ireland (70 per cent) and Spain (55 per cent) indicate there has been no apparent increase in working hours over the past couple of years. More than one-third (38 per cent) of respondents from Italy say they now work five to 10 hours a week more than they did two years ago, compared to roughly one in four (27 per cent) professionals from the UK. These results tend to mirror economic trends.While Ireland and Spain have enjoyed a sustained period of economic stability, countries such as Italy and the UK have experienced economic growth over the past two years resulting in business expansion and enhanced commercial opportunities.

Globally, 37 per cent of financial professionals polled said they work between 39 and 45 hours per week, and more than half (52 per cent) said they have been putting in more time over the last two years. The three most popular reasons for an increase in working hours are taking on more responsibility (56 per cent), company growth (45 per cent) and understaffing (27 per cent).

In Spain, 65 per cent of professionals say they never work weekends, while 31 per cent of respondents from the UK and one in four (25 per cent) from the United States admits to usually working one weekend each month. European professionals are the most reluctant to work weekends with 46 per cent reporting that they never do. This compares with 32 per cent from the Asia-Pacific region and 31 per cent from North America.

Professionals in Europe (65 per cent) are the least likely to interrupt their holiday with work concerns. This is reflected by respondents from Ireland and the UK with 83 per cent and 71 per cent of respondents, respectively, saying they don’t take their laptop or PDA away with them on holiday, and don’t want to think about work on vacation. The major exception in Europe is
Luxembourg, with approximately one in four (26 per cent) respondents saying they cannot relax on holiday unless they are in touch with the office. In North America, 16 per cent of respondents say they will not relax unless they are in touch with the office, 2 per cent above the global average.

"Finance and accounting managers have taken on new roles and responsibilities due to company expansion and the emphasis on corporate governance and compliance,” said Max Messmer, chairman and CEO of Robert Half International. “This clearly has resulted in heavier workloads -- and, in many cases, the need to work longer hours.”

Messmer noted that as business becomes more global, it’s useful to understand typical work hours and preferences across cultures.

“Professionals around the world have differing expectations of how and when they should work,” he said. “As organisations branch into new countries, they must understand and respect the customs within different parts of the world. While it may be acceptable to call contacts in one location in the evening or during their vacation, for example, others may consider it intrusive or unprofessional.”

"Increasing globalisation and improved connectivity mean the traditional nine-to-five working day is fast becoming unrealistic. In many industries, financial employees must look beyond international time zones and work whenever they are needed to accommodate operating hours in foreign markets. Technology makes this possible but does not address the human side of the equation unless wisely used."

"The same flexibility that advanced devices offer professionals to stay connected with their work also can facilitate a healthier work/life balance. Professionals now have the opportunity to spend an afternoon with their families while at the same time responding to urgent matters back at the office, if necessary."

"Technology cannot do it all, however. Financial professionals need to learn to manage their time more efficiently, and employers must make it easier for them to do so by promoting flexible work structures. It’s a shared responsibility. Company growth is making longer hours necessary for employees in many industries, but there is a point of diminishing returns. While some financial professionals feel they must work evenings, weekends and holidays just to keep pace, managers who encourage employees to take periodic breaks ultimately promote long-term productivity."