The Monster Meter Says: We''re a Nation of Workaholics!

London - 10 July, 2002 - According to the latest Monster Meter of 13,497 Europeans, including 1,634 Brits, workers in the UK regularly work weekends more often than in any other European country. Over 1 in 3 workers (36%) in the UK find their jobs eat into every weekend compared with an average of one in four (26%) in Europe. Also, as many as 56% of workers find themselves working overtime at weekends at least once a month whereas the European average is 49%. The Monster Meter, a product of Monster.com*, the leading global online careers site and flagship brand of TMP Worldwide Inc. (NASDAQ: TMPW), is a series of online polls that gauge users'' opinions on a variety of topics relating to careers, the economy and the workplace.

The Monster Meter asked, How often do you find your job eats into your weekend?

A total of 1,638 votes were cast on the Monster.co.uk site between 3rd June and 24th June, revealing:

35% (566 votes) said: Never - my weekend is my time off.
36% (597 votes) said: Every weekend.
20% (323 votes) said: Once a month.
9% (148 votes) said: Perhaps once every six months.

A total of 13,497 votes were cast across Monster''s 14 sites in Europe sites between 3rd June and 24th June, revealing:

40% (5,363 votes) said: Never - my weekend is my time off.
26% (3,561 votes) said: Every weekend.
23% (3,045 votes) said: Once a month.
11% (1,528 votes) said: Perhaps once every six months.

The European-wide trend revealed a continent divided when it comes to putting in overtime. One half of workers (49%) find their jobs encroach on their weekend at least once a month. However, the other half (51%) never work at weekends or if they do, it is perhaps only once every six months. With the highest percentage of workers in the office every weekend, UK figures bucked European trends. A high of 36% of voters in the UK work every weekend is staggering when compared to only 15% in Finland or 18% in the Netherlands. A low of 35% of voters in the UK responded that they never work at weekends compared to a high of 54% of workers in Spain.

Joe Slavin, Managing Director, Monster.co.uk commented, In the UK we are seeing a workaholic culture with more people working extra hours at weekends than anywhere else in Europe. This suggests that in the UK employees have not yet adopted a well-tuned work/life balance as readily as some of their European counterparts. However, these results may also reflect the current economic climate, in which companies have to tackle the same workload with fewer human resources. This means heavier workloads and longer working hours. It is now more crucial than ever that employees have a plan in place to cope with the stress and pressure so common in today''s fast-paced, technologically advanced workplace.

The results of the current Monster Meter are based on votes cast by Monster users in Europe from 3rd June to 24th June 2002. Only one vote per user is counted toward the final tabulation. Anyone interested in voting in Monster''s current online poll may do so by logging onto Monster at: