Recent analysis has shown the amount of time female workers spend commuting has risen over the last six years, whilst the figure has fallen for men.
The TUC’s analysis of the Labour Force survey has shown the average amount of time women spend travelling to and from work has risen by 0.6 minutes to 47.4 minutes a day.
Contrastingly, since 2006 the average daily commute for a male worker has fallen by 0.2 minutes to 58 minutes.
There has also been an average reduction of 0.4 minutes a day to commuting times across the nation.
The TUC have suggested a rise in the number of men in part-time work has contributed significantly to this figure.
TUC General Secretary Brenda Barber said: ‘Recent trends suggest there is a link between long commute times and longer hours in the office, with the growing number of men in part-time work having shorter journeys to work.’
However, the figures also show the average worker still spends 52.8 minutes commuting every day.
This equates to a total of four hours and 24 minutes spent travelling to and from work each week. This is equivalent to 5 weeks in a 44-week working year.
Phil Flaxton, Chief Executive of Work Wise UK, has suggested these figures could be reduced further. He is encouraging businesses to use Commute Smart week as an “opportunity to change attitudes and thinking in relation to working practises.”
He said: “Commute Smart week provides a real opportunity to revise tired working practises, how and where people work and set about adopting flexible approaches to people management as a key component of effective change.'