Indian biz leaders top stress ranking

New Delhi: Indian business leaders are among the world's most stressed employees as they put in more working hours (around 57 hours per week), in a bid to remain competitive in a globalised and technologically advanced world, a survey conducted by Grant Thornton International Business report says.

The report also suggests that business leaders in emerging economies tend to work the longest hours with India and Argentina at the top of the league, both at 57 hours a week, followed by Armenia, Australia and Botswana (56 hours).

"Stress levels are continuing to rise around the world, with particular concern for business leaders in the emerging economies of main land China, India and Russia," a news agency quoted leading global accounting and consulting firm Grant Thornton India National Managing Partner Vishesh Chandiok as saying.

In India, 79 per cent respondents said their stress levels have increased and in Russia 76 per cent feel the same.

"Globalisation and increasing technological advances have increased the pressure on business leaders to 'always be contactable' and this appears to be having an increasing strain on their lives," Chandiok added.

Mainland China tops the chart as its business leaders, working 54 hours a week, are the most stressed in the world, with 84 per cent reporting an increase in stress levels compared to last year followed by Taiwan with 82 per cent, as per the IBR report.

"The stress levels appear to be a reflection of the pace of growth in these economies and of the longer hours worked by business leaders in these countries as they strive to take advantage of domestic and global economic expansion," Chandiok added.

The study includes countries like -- Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Singapore, South Africa, Turkey, the UK and the US.

Chandiok further added that the challenge for business leaders is how they can improve modern working practices to allow time to 'switch off' from the strains of increasingly demanding business lives - while remaining competitive.

The IBR research shows that business leaders around the world work an average 53 hours a week with Europeans working for just 50 hours, followed by respondents in East Asia with 53 hours and NAFTA with 54 hours.

(With agency inputs)