One-third white-collars work 5 extra hours a week

Over half of Chinese white-collar workers sit all day in offices without getting any exercise, and one-third work an extra five hours a week, according to a survey by Zhaopin.com, a Chinese recruitment services website.

The website's report shows that many white-collar employees are under heavy pressure due to continuous meetings and a lack of exercise.

Employees of state-owned enterprises attend meetings for an average of 1.48 hours per day, and 1.15 hours at private companies. The survey finds that the more senior the position, the more time he or she spends in meetings.

About 33 percent of respondents say the meetings are useless and a waste of time. Only 6.4 percent say the meetings were about brainstorming, while over 32 percent said meetings were just for communicating information.

Employees in the IT, telecommunication, electronics and Internet sectors work the most overtime at 9.3 hours a week, on average, followed by 7.1 hours for those in the real estate and construction sectors.

The survey also shows that the working environment satisfaction index is 2.59 out of 5, with only 20 percent of employees satisfied with their work conditions.

Younger workers tend to be less satisfied. Some 40 percent of those born in the 1960s find their work conditions acceptable, but the percentage dropped to 20.6 and 18.9 for those born post-80s and post-90s respectively.

Companies are also under the heavy pressure to retain employees who have become more aware of their career pursuits.