Report: NYC's commuting time, work hours make for longest work week among 30 biggest US cities

Between commuting time and work hours, New York City residents have the longest work weeks among the country's 30 biggest cities, city Comptroller Scott Stringer said in a report released Tuesday.

The report said a typical week for a full-time New York worker adds up to more than 49 hours, including an average of more than six hours of commuting time. That was more than four hours longer than in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where the average work week was about 44 ½ hours. Commuting time made up just under 3 ½ hours of that.

The report was based on data from the U.S. Census from 1990 and 2000 and the 2013 American Community Survey.

Stringer said commuting times were longer for lower-wage workers, who were more likely than higher-wage workers to live in parts of the city that aren't as well-served by public transportation. Security guards, for example, on average spent more than eight hours a week commuting.

Stringer said the report showed a need for the city to expand its transit networks, as well as promote flexible work arrangements along with predictable scheduling.

"If New York City is going to symbolize the American Dream, we can't be a nightmare when it comes to long work hours and commuting," Stringer said. "Our residents deserve better."