For release 10:00 a.m. (EDT) Thursday, June 20, 2013 USDL-13-1178
Technical information: (202) 691-6339 * atusinfo@bls.gov * www.bls.gov/tus
Media contact: (202) 691-5902 * PressOffice@bls.gov
AMERICAN TIME USE SURVEY -- 2012 RESULTS
In 2012, on days they worked, 23 percent of employed persons did some or all of
their work at home, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Among
workers age 25 and over, those with a bachelor's degree or higher were more likely
to work at home than were persons with less education--38 percent of those with a
bachelor's degree or higher performed some work at home on days worked compared
with 5 percent of those with less than a high school diploma.
These and other results from the American Time Use Survey (ATUS) were released
today. These data include the average amount of time per day in 2012 that
individuals worked, did household activities, and engaged in leisure and sports
activities. Additionally, measures of the average time per day spent providing
childcare--both as a primary (or main) activity and while doing other things--
for the combined years 2008-12 are provided. For a further description of ATUS
data and methodology, see the Technical Note.
Working (by Employed Persons) in 2012
--Employed persons worked an average of 7.7 hours on the days they
worked. More hours were worked, on average, on weekdays than on
weekend days--8.0 hours compared with 5.7 hours. (See table 4.)
--On the days they worked, employed men worked 55 minutes more than
employed women. This difference partly reflects women's greater
likelihood of working part time. However, even among full-time workers
(those usually working 35 hours or more per week), men worked longer
than women--8.5 hours compared with 7.9 hours. (See table 4.)
--Many more people worked on weekdays than on weekend days--83
percent of employed persons worked on an average weekday, compared
with 34 percent on an average weekend day. (See table 4.)
--On the days they worked, 85 percent of employed persons did some
or all of their work at their workplace and 23 percent did some or all
of their work at home. They spent more time working at the workplace
than at home--7.9 hours compared with 3.0 hours. (See table 6.)
--Multiple jobholders were more likely to work on an average day than
were single jobholders--83 percent compared with 67 percent. (For
a definition of average day, see the Technical Note.) Multiple
jobholders also were more likely to work at home than were single
jobholders--34 percent compared with 22 percent. (See table 6.)
--Self-employed workers were nearly three times more likely than wage
and salary workers to have done some work at home on days worked--56
percent compared with 20 percent. Self-employed workers also were
more likely to work on weekend days than were wage and salary
workers--42 percent compared with 31 percent. (See tables 5 and 7.)
--On the days they worked, 38 percent of employed people age 25 and
over with a bachelor's degree or higher did some work at home,
compared with only 5 percent of those with less than a high school
diploma. (See table 6.)
Household Activities in 2012
--On an average day, 82 percent of women and 65 percent of men spent
some time doing household activities such as housework, cooking, lawn
care, or financial and other household management. (See table 1.)
--On the days they did household activities, women spent an average
of 2.6 hours on such activities, while men spent 2.0 hours. (See
table 1.)
--On an average day, 20 percent of men did housework--such as cleaning
or doing laundry--compared with 48 percent of women. Thirty-nine
percent of men did food preparation or cleanup, compared with 65
percent of women. (See table 1.)
Leisure Activities in 2012
--On an average day, nearly everyone age 15 and over (96 percent)
engaged in some sort of leisure activity, such as watching TV,
socializing, or exercising. Of those who engaged in leisure
activities, men spent more time in these activities (6.0 hours)
than did women (5.2 hours). (See table 1.)
--Watching TV was the leisure activity that occupied the most time
(2.8 hours per day), accounting for about half of leisure time, on
average, for those age 15 and over. Socializing, such as visiting
with friends or attending or hosting social events, was the next most
common leisure activity, accounting for nearly three-quarters of an
hour per day. (See table 1.)
--Men were more likely than women to participate in sports, exercise,
or recreation on any given day--22 percent compared with 17 percent.
On the days that they participated, men also spent more time in these
activities than did women--1.9 hours compared with 1.4 hours. (See
table 1.)
--On an average day, adults age 75 and over spent 7.7 hours engaged
in leisure activities--more than any other age group; 25- to 34-year-
olds spent 4.4 hours and 35- to 44-year-olds spent 4.3 hours engaged
in leisure and sports activities--less than other age groups. (See
table 11.)
--Time spent reading for personal interest and playing games or using
a computer for leisure varied greatly by age. Individuals age 75
and over averaged 1.0 hour of reading per weekend day and 20 minutes
playing games or using a computer for leisure. Conversely, individuals
ages 15 to 19 read for an average of 7 minutes per weekend day while
spending 1.0 hour playing games or using a computer for leisure. (See
table 11.)
--Employed adults living in households with no children under age 18 engaged
in leisure activities for 4.7 hours per day, about an hour more than
employed adults living with a child under age 6. (See table 8.)
Care of Household Children (by Adults in Households with Children) for
the period 2008-12
--Adults living in households with children under age 6 spent an average
of 2.0 hours per day providing primary childcare to household
children. Adults living in households where the youngest child was
between the ages of 6 and 17 spent less than half as much time
providing primary childcare to household children--47 minutes per
day. Primary childcare is childcare that is done as a main activity,
such as physical care of children and reading to or talking with
children. (See table 9.)
--On an average day, among adults living in households with children
under age 6, women spent 1.1 hours providing physical care (such as
bathing or feeding a child) to household children; by contrast, men
spent 26 minutes providing physical care. (See table 9.)
--Adults living in households with at least one child under age 6 spent
an average of 5.4 hours per day providing secondary childcare--that
is, they had at least one child in their care while doing activities
other than primary childcare. Secondary childcare provided by adults
living in households with children under age 6 was most commonly provided
while doing leisure activities (2.1 hours) or household activities
(1.3 hours). (See table 10.)
--Adults living in households with children under age 6 spent more time
providing primary childcare on an average weekday (2.1 hours) than
on an average weekend day (1.7 hours). However, they spent less time
providing secondary childcare on weekdays than on weekend days--4.5
hours compared with 7.6 hours. (See tables 9 and 10.)
Additional Data
ATUS 2012 data files are available for users to do their own tabulations
and analyses. In accordance with BLS and Census Bureau policies that
protect survey respondents' privacy, identifying information was removed
from the data files and some responses have been edited. The 2012 data
files are available on the BLS website at www.bls.gov/tus/data.htm.
Technical Note
The estimates in this release are based on annual average data from
the American Time Use Survey (ATUS). The ATUS, which is conducted by
the U.S. Census Bureau for the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), is a
continuous survey about how individuals age 15 and over spend their
time.
Information in this release will be made available to sensory
impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200;
Federal Relay Service: (800) 877-8339.
Survey methodology
Data collection for the ATUS began in January 2003. Sample cases
for the survey are selected monthly, and interviews are conducted
continuously throughout the year. In 2012, approximately 12,500
individuals were interviewed. Estimates are released annually.
ATUS sample households are chosen from the households that
completed their eighth (final) interview for the Current Population
Survey (CPS), the nation's monthly household labor force survey. ATUS
sample households are selected to ensure that estimates will be
nationally representative.
One individual age 15 or over is randomly chosen from each sampled
household. This "designated person" is interviewed by telephone once
about his or her activities on the day before the interview--the "diary
day."
All ATUS interviews are conducted using Computer Assisted Telephone
Interviewing. Procedures are in place to collect information from the
small number of households that did not provide a telephone number
during the CPS interview.
ATUS designated persons are preassigned a day of the week about
which to report. Preassignment is designed to reduce variability in
response rates across the week and to allow oversampling of weekend
days so that accurate weekend day measures can be developed. Interviews
occur on the day following the assigned day. For example, a person
assigned to report about a Monday would be contacted on the following
Tuesday. Ten percent of designated persons are assigned to report about
each of the five weekdays. Twenty-five percent are assigned to report
about each weekend day. Households are called for up to 8 consecutive
weeks (for example, 8 Tuesdays) in order to secure an interview.
About the questionnaire
In the time diary portion of the ATUS interview, survey respondents
sequentially report activities they did between 4 a.m. on the day
before the interview ("yesterday") until 4 a.m. on the day of the
interview. For each activity, respondents are asked how long the
activity lasted. For activities other than personal care activities
(such as sleeping and grooming), interviewers also ask respondents
where they were and who was in the room with them (if at home) or who
accompanied them (if away from home). If respondents report doing
more than one activity at a time, they are asked to identify which one
was the "main" (primary) activity. If none can be identified, then
the interviewer records the first activity mentioned. After completing
the time diary, interviewers ask respondents additional questions to
clearly identify work, volunteering, and secondary childcare activities.
Secondary childcare is defined as having a child under age 13 in one's
care while doing other activities. Questions to identify eldercare
providers and activities done as eldercare were added to the survey in
2011.
In addition, the ATUS includes an update of the household
composition information from the last CPS interview (2 to 5 months
prior to the ATUS interview) and the employment status information
of the respondent and his or her spouse or unmarried partner. For
respondents who became employed or changed jobs between the last CPS
interview and the ATUS interview, information also is collected on
industry, occupation, class of worker, and earnings. For those who
are unemployed or on layoff, CPS questions on job search activities
are asked. Those who report being on layoff are asked if or when they
expect to be recalled to work. Finally, a question about current
school enrollment status is asked of all respondents ages 15 to 49.
After completing the interview, primary activity descriptions are
assigned a single 6-digit code using the ATUS Coding Lexicon. The 3-
tier coding system consists of 17 major activity categories, each with
multiple second- and third-tier subcategories. These coding lexicon
categories are then combined into composite categories for publication,
such as in this news release. Descriptions of categories shown in this
release can be found in the Major activity category definitions section
of this Technical Note. The 2012 ATUS Coding Lexicon can be accessed at
www.bls.gov/tus/lexicons.htm.
Concepts and definitions
Average day. The average day measure reflects an average
distribution across all persons in the reference population and all
days of the week. Average day measures for the entire population
provide a mechanism for seeing the overall distribution of time
allocation for society as a whole. The ATUS collects data about daily
activities from all segments of the population age 15 and over,
including persons who are employed and not employed. Activity
profiles differ based upon age, employment status, gender, and other
characteristics. On an average day in 2012, persons in the U.S. age
15 and over did work and work-related activities for 3.5 hours, slept
8.7 hours, spent 5.4 hours doing leisure and sports activities, and
spent 1.7 hours doing household activities. The remaining 4.7 hours
were spent doing a variety of other activities, including eating and
drinking, attending school, and shopping. (See table 1.) By comparison,
an average weekday for persons employed full time on days that they
worked included 9.4 hours doing work and work-related activities, 7.6
hours sleeping, 2.9 hours doing leisure and sports activities, and 0.8
hour doing household activities. The remaining 3.3 hours were spent in
other activities, such as those described above. (These estimates
include related travel time.)
Many activities typically are not done on a daily basis, and some
activities only are done by a subset of the population. For example,
only 42 percent of all persons age 15 years and over worked on an
average day in 2012 because some were not employed and those who were
employed did not work every day. (See table 1.)
Average hours per day. The average number of hours spent in a 24-
hour day (between 4 a.m. on the diary day and 4 a.m. on the interview
day) doing a specified activity.
--Average hours per day, population. The average number of hours per
day is computed using all responses from a given population, including
those of respondents who did not do a particular activity on their
diary day. These estimates reflect how many population members engaged
in an activity and the amount of time they spent doing it.
--Average hours per day, persons who did the activity. The average
number of hours per day is computed using only responses from those
who engaged in a particular activity on their diary day.
Diary day. The diary day is the day about which the respondent reports. For
example, the diary day of a respondent interviewed on Tuesday is Monday.
Earnings
--Usual weekly earnings. Estimates represent the earnings of full-
time wage and salary workers with one job only (both incorporated and
unincorporated self-employed are excluded), before taxes and other
deductions. They include any overtime pay, commissions, or tips
usually received. Usual weekly earnings are only updated in ATUS for
about a third of employed respondents--if the respondent changed jobs
or employment status between the CPS and ATUS interviews or if the CPS
weekly earnings value was imputed. This means that the earnings
information could be out of date because the CPS interview was done 2
to 5 months prior to the ATUS interview. Respondents are asked to
identify the easiest way for them to report earnings (hourly, weekly,
biweekly, twice monthly, annually, or other) and how much they usually
earn in the reported time period. Earnings reported on a basis other
than weekly are converted to a weekly equivalent. The term "usual" is
as perceived by the respondent. If the respondent asks for a
definition of usual, interviewers are instructed to define the term as
more than half the weeks worked during the past 4 or 5 months.
--Weekly earnings ranges. The ranges used represent approximately 25
percent of full-time wage and salary workers (both incorporated and
unincorporated self-employed are excluded) who held only one job. For
example, 25 percent of full-time wage and salary workers with one job
only had weekly earnings of $530 or less. These dollar values vary
from year to year.
Employment status
--Employed. All persons who, at any time during the 7 days prior
to the interview:
--1) Did any work at all as paid employees; worked in their own
business, profession, or on their own farm; or usually worked 15
hours or more as unpaid workers in a family-operated enterprise;
or
--2) Were not working but had jobs or businesses from which they
were temporarily absent due to illness, bad weather, vacation,
childcare problems, labor-management disputes, maternity or
paternity leave, job training, or other family or personal
reasons, whether or not they were paid for the time off or were
seeking other jobs.
--Employed full time. Full-time workers are those who usually
worked 35 hours or more per week at all jobs combined.
--Employed part time. Part-time workers are those who usually
worked fewer than 35 hours per week at all jobs combined.
--Not employed. Persons are not employed if they do not meet the
conditions for employment. The not employed include those classified
as unemployed as well as those classified as not in the labor force
(using CPS definitions).
The numbers of employed and not employed persons in this report do
not correspond to published totals from the CPS for several reasons.
First, the reference population for the ATUS is age 15 years and over,
whereas it is age 16 years and over for the CPS. Second, ATUS data
are collected continuously, the employment reference period being the
7 days prior to the interview. By contrast, CPS data are usually
collected during the week including the 19th of the month and refer to
employment during the week containing the 12th of the month. Finally,
the CPS accepts answers from household members about other household
members whereas such proxy responses are not allowed in the ATUS. One
consequence of the difference in proxy reporting is that a
significantly higher proportion of teenagers report employment in the
ATUS than in the CPS. While the information on employment from the
ATUS is useful for assessing work in the context of other daily
activities, the employment data are not intended for analysis of
current employment trends. Compared with the CPS and other estimates
of employment, the ATUS estimates are based on a much smaller sample
and are only available with a substantial lag since ATUS data and
estimates are published during the year following data collection.
Household children. Household children are children under age 18
residing in the household of the ATUS respondent. The children may be
related to the respondent (such as his or her own children, grandchildren,
nieces or nephews, or siblings) or not related (such as foster children or
children of roommates).
Primary activity. A primary activity is the main activity a
respondent was doing at a specified time. With the exception of
secondary childcare in table 10, the estimates presented in this
release reflect time spent in primary activities only.
Secondary activities. A secondary (or simultaneous) activity is
an activity done at the same time as a primary activity. With the
exception of the care of children under age 13, information on
secondary activities is not systematically collected in the ATUS.
Secondary childcare. Secondary childcare is care for children
under age 13 that is done while doing an activity other than primary
childcare, such as cooking dinner. Secondary childcare estimates are
derived by summing the durations of activities during which
respondents had a household child or their own nonhousehold child
under age 13 in their care while doing activities other than primary
childcare. It is restricted to times the respondent was awake.
Secondary childcare time for household children is further restricted
to the time between when the first household child under age 13 woke
up and the last household child under age 13 went to bed. If
respondents report providing both primary and secondary care at the
same time, the time is attributed to primary care only.
Weekday, weekend, and holiday estimates. Estimates for weekdays
are an average of reports about Monday through Friday. Estimates for
weekend days and holidays are an average of reports about Saturdays,
Sundays, and the following holidays: New Year's Day, Easter, Memorial
Day, the Fourth of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas
Day. In 2012, the telephone call center was closed the day after
New Year's Day, so data were not collected about this holiday. Data
were not collected about Christmas Day in 2008 and 2011, and the Fourth
of July in 2010.
Major activity category definitions
The following definitions describe the activity categories shown
in this report. All major time-use categories in Tables 1-12 include
related travel time and waiting time. For example, time spent
"driving to the stadium" and time spent "waiting to get into the
stadium to play ball" are included in Leisure and sports.
Personal care activities. Personal care activities include
sleeping, grooming (such as bathing or dressing), health-related self-
care, and personal or private activities. Receiving unpaid personal
care from others (for example, "my sister put polish on my nails") also
is captured in this category. In general, respondents are not asked who
they were with or where they were for personal care activities, as such
information can be sensitive.
Eating and drinking. All time spent eating or drinking (except
eating and drinking done as part of a work or volunteer activity),
whether alone, with others, at home, at a place of purchase, or
somewhere else, is classified here.
Household activities. Household activities are those done by
persons to maintain their households. These include housework;
cooking; lawn and garden care; pet care; vehicle maintenance and
repair; home maintenance, repair, decoration, and renovation; and
household management and organizational activities (such as filling
out paperwork or planning a party). Food preparation, whether or not
reported as done specifically for another household member, is always
classified as a household activity unless it was done as a volunteer,
work, or income-generating activity. For example, "making breakfast
for my son" is coded as a household activity, not as childcare.
Purchasing goods and services. This category includes purchases of
consumer goods, professional and personal care services, household
services, and government services. Consumer purchases include most
purchases and rentals of consumer goods, regardless of the mode or
place of purchase or rental (in person, via telephone, over the
Internet, at home, or in a store). Gasoline, grocery, other food
purchases, and all other shopping are further broken out in
subcategories.
Time spent obtaining, receiving, and purchasing professional and
personal care services provided by someone else also is classified in
this category. Professional services include childcare, financial
services and banking, legal services, medical and adult care services,
real estate services, and veterinary services. Personal care services
include day spas, hair salons and barbershops, nail salons, and
tanning salons. Activities classified here include time spent paying,
meeting with, or talking to service providers, as well as time spent
receiving the service or waiting to receive the service.
Time spent arranging for and purchasing household services provided
by someone else also is classified here. Household services include
housecleaning; cooking; lawn care and landscaping; pet care; tailoring,
laundering, and dry cleaning; vehicle maintenance and repairs; and home
repairs, maintenance, and construction.
This category also captures the time spent obtaining government
services--such as applying for food stamps--and purchasing government-
required licenses or paying fines or fees.
Caring for and helping household members. Time spent doing
activities to care for or help any child (under age 18) or adult in
the household, regardless of relationship to the respondent or the
physical or mental health status of the person being helped, is
classified here. Caring for and helping activities for household
children and adults are coded separately in subcategories.
Primary childcare activities include time spent providing physical
care; playing with children; reading to children; assistance with
homework; attending children's events; taking care of children's
health needs; and dropping off, picking up, and waiting for children.
Passive childcare done as a primary activity (such as "keeping an eye
on my son while he swam in the pool") also is included. A child's
presence during the activity is not enough in itself to classify the
activity as childcare. For example, "watching television with my
child" is coded as a leisure activity, not as childcare.
Secondary childcare occurs when persons have a child under age 13
"in their care" while doing activities other than primary childcare.
For a complete definition, see the Concepts and definitions section of
this Technical Note.
Caring for and helping household members also includes a range of
activities done to benefit adult members of households, such as
providing physical and medical care or obtaining medical services.
Doing something as a favor for or helping another household adult does
not automatically result in classification as a helping activity. For
example, a report of "helping my spouse cook dinner" is considered a
household activity (food preparation), not a helping activity, because
cooking dinner benefits the household as a whole. By contrast, doing
paperwork for another person usually benefits the individual, so a
report of "filling out an insurance application for my spouse" is
considered a helping activity.
Caring for and helping nonhousehold members. Caring for and
helping nonhousehold members includes activities persons do to care
for or help those--either children (under age 18) or adults--who do not
live with them. When done for or through an organization, time spent
helping nonhousehold members is classified as volunteering, rather
than as helping nonhousehold members. Care of nonhousehold children,
even when done as a favor or helping activity for another adult, is
always classified as caring for and helping nonhousehold children, not
as helping another adult.
Working and work-related activities. This category includes time
spent working, doing activities as part of one's job, engaging in
income-generating activities (not as part of one's job), and job
search activities. "Working" includes hours spent doing the specific
tasks required of one's main or other job, regardless of location or
time of day. "Work-related activities" include activities that are
not obviously work but are done as part of one's job, such as having a
business lunch or playing golf with clients. "Other income-generating
activities" are those done "on the side" or under informal arrangement
and are not part of a regular job. Such activities might include
selling homemade crafts, babysitting, maintaining a rental property,
or having a yard sale. These activities are those that persons "are
paid for or will be paid for."
Travel time related to working and work-related activities includes
time spent traveling to and from work, as well as time spent traveling
for work-related, income-generating, and job search activities.
Educational activities. Educational activities include taking
classes (including Internet and other distance-learning courses) for a
degree as well as for personal interest; doing research and homework;
and taking care of administrative tasks related to education, such as
registering for classes or obtaining a school ID. For high school
students, before- and after-school extracurricular activities (except
sports) also are classified as educational activities. Educational
activities do not include time spent for classes or training received
as part of a job. Time spent helping others with their education-
related activities is classified in the Caring for and helping
categories.
Organizational, civic, and religious activities. This category
captures time spent volunteering for or through an organization,
performing civic obligations, and participating in religious and
spiritual activities. Civic obligations include government-required
duties, such as serving jury duty or appearing in court, and
activities that assist or influence government processes, such as
voting or attending town hall meetings. Religious activities include
those normally associated with membership in or identification with
specific religions or denominations, such as attending religious
services; participating in choirs, youth groups, orchestras, or unpaid
teaching (unless identified as volunteer activities); and engaging in
personal religious practices, such as praying.
Leisure and sports. The leisure and sports category includes
sports, exercise, and recreation; socializing and communicating; and
other leisure activities. Sports, exercise, and recreation activities
include participating in--as well as attending or watching--sports,
exercise, and recreational activities. Recreational activities are
leisure activities that are active in nature, such as yard games like
croquet or horseshoes. Socializing and communicating includes face-to-
face social communication and hosting or attending social functions.
Leisure activities include watching television; reading; relaxing or
thinking; playing computer, board, or card games; using a computer or
the Internet for personal interest; playing or listening to music; and
other activities, such as attending arts, cultural, and entertainment
events.
Telephone calls, mail, and e-mail. This category captures
telephone communication and handling household or personal mail or e-
mail. Telephone and Internet purchases are classified in Purchasing
goods and services. Telephone calls, mail, or e-mail identified as
related to work or volunteering are classified as work or volunteering.
Other activities, not elsewhere classified. This residual category
includes security procedures related to traveling, traveling not
associated with a specific activity category, ambiguous activities that
could not be coded, and missing activities. Missing activities result
when respondents did not remember what they did for a period of time,
or when they considered an activity too private or personal to report.
Processing and estimation
After ATUS data are collected, they go through an editing and
imputation procedure. Responses to CPS questions that are re-asked in
the ATUS go through the regular CPS edit and imputation procedures.
Some item nonresponses for questions unique to the ATUS (such as where
an activity took place or how much time was spent doing secondary
childcare) also are imputed. Missing activities and missing values
for who was present during an activity are never imputed.
ATUS records are weighted quarterly to reduce bias in the estimates
due to differences in sampling and response rates across subpopulations
and days of the week. Specifically, the data are weighted to ensure the
following:
--Weekdays represent about 5/7 of the weighted data, and weekend
days represent about 2/7 of the weighted data for the population
as a whole. The actual proportions depend on the number of weekdays
and weekend days in a given quarter.
--The sum of the weights is equal to the number of person-days in
the quarter for the population as a whole and for selected
subpopulations.
Reliability of the estimates
Statistics based on the ATUS are subject to both sampling and
nonsampling error. When a sample, rather than the entire population,
is surveyed, estimates differ from the true population values they
represent. The component of this difference that occurs because
samples differ by chance is known as sampling error, and its
variability is measured by the standard error of the estimate.
Sample estimates from a given survey design are unbiased when an
average of the estimates from all possible samples would yield,
hypothetically, the true population value. In this case, the sample
estimate and its standard error can be used to construct approximate
confidence intervals, or ranges of values that include the true
population value with known probabilities. If the process of selecting
a sample from the population were repeated many times, an estimate
made from each sample, and a suitable estimate of its standard error
calculated for each sample, then approximately 90 percent of the
intervals from 1.645 standard errors below the estimate to 1.645
standard errors above the estimate would include the true population
value. BLS analyses are generally conducted at the 90-percent level
of confidence.
The ATUS data also are affected by nonsampling error, which is
the average difference between population and sample values for
samples generated by a given process. Nonsampling error can occur for
many reasons, including the failure to sample a segment of the
population, inability to obtain information for all respondents in the
sample, inability or unwillingness of respondents to provide correct
information, and errors made in the collection or processing of the
data. Errors also could occur if non-response is correlated with time
use.
Publication requirements
Estimates of average hours per day and participation rates are
not published unless there are a minimum number of respondents
representing the given population. Additional publication criteria are
applied that include the number of respondents who reported doing a
specified activity and the standard error or coefficient of variation
for the estimate. Estimates that are considered "close to zero" or
that round to 0.00, are published as approximately zero or "~0." For
a detailed description of the statistical reliability criteria necessary
for publication, please contact ATUS staff at ATUSinfo@bls.gov.
Table 1. Time spent in primary activities (1) and percent of the civilian population engaging in each activity, averages per
day by sex, 2012 annual averages
Average hours per day, Average percent engaged Average hours per day
civilian population in the activity per day for persons who engaged
Activity in the activity
Total Men Women Total Men Women Total Men Women
Total, all activities (2).............................. 24.00 24.00 24.00 --- --- --- --- --- ---
Personal care activities............................. 9.49 9.22 9.74 100.0 99.9 100.0 9.49 9.22 9.74
Sleeping.......................................... 8.73 8.60 8.86 99.9 99.9 99.9 8.74 8.61 8.86
Eating and drinking.................................. 1.25 1.30 1.20 96.0 95.9 96.0 1.30 1.35 1.25
Household activities................................. 1.74 1.29 2.17 73.7 64.5 82.3 2.36 1.99 2.63
Housework......................................... .60 .28 .90 34.6 19.8 48.4 1.73 1.40 1.86
Food preparation and cleanup...................... .53 .28 .75 52.5 39.2 64.9 1.00 .72 1.16
Lawn and garden care.............................. .18 .25 .12 9.8 11.7 8.0 1.87 2.11 1.53
Household management.............................. .13 .10 .15 16.3 13.6 18.8 .78 .77 .79
Purchasing goods and services........................ .72 .60 .84 41.4 37.2 45.3 1.74 1.60 1.85
Consumer goods purchases.......................... .35 .27 .43 37.5 34.0 40.8 .94 .80 1.05
Professional and personal care services........... .08 .06 .10 7.4 5.6 9.0 1.10 1.05 1.13
Caring for and helping household members............. .51 .35 .66 24.5 19.7 28.9 2.09 1.79 2.27
Caring for and helping household children......... .40 .27 .53 20.4 15.6 24.8 1.98 1.71 2.14
Caring for and helping nonhousehold members.......... .18 .16 .20 11.2 9.9 12.3 1.62 1.59 1.64
Caring for and helping nonhousehold adults........ .06 .06 .05 7.3 7.0 7.5 .80 .91 .70
Working and work-related activities.................. 3.53 4.17 2.94 43.9 48.8 39.3 8.05 8.54 7.49
Working........................................... 3.19 3.74 2.67 41.8 46.5 37.4 7.63 8.05 7.13
Educational activities............................... .50 .53 .47 8.5 8.8 8.2 5.87 6.01 5.73
Attending class................................... .28 .30 .26 5.4 5.8 5.1 5.16 5.17 5.14
Homework and research............................. .17 .18 .16 6.2 6.1 6.2 2.75 2.89 2.63
Organizational, civic, and religious activities...... .32 .26 .38 13.8 10.9 16.6 2.33 2.42 2.27
Religious and spiritual activities................ .15 .12 .18 9.0 6.7 11.1 1.66 1.72 1.63
Volunteering (organizational and civic activities) .13 .11 .15 6.0 5.0 7.0 2.13 2.21 2.08
Leisure and sports................................... 5.37 5.79 4.97 96.2 96.9 95.6 5.58 5.98 5.20
Socializing and communicating..................... .74 .72 .76 37.2 35.4 38.9 2.00 2.04 1.96
Watching television............................... 2.83 3.07 2.61 80.1 80.9 79.3 3.54 3.80 3.29
Participating in sports, exercise, and recreation .32 .41 .24 19.3 21.7 17.0 1.67 1.90 1.39
Telephone calls, mail, and e-mail.................... .16 .11 .20 19.8 15.7 23.6 .78 .70 .84
Other activities, not elsewhere classified........... .24 .23 .25 14.1 12.8 15.3 1.69 1.80 1.60
1 A primary activity refers to an individual's main activity. Other activities done simultaneously are not included.
2 All major activity categories include related travel time. See Technical Note for activity category definitions.
- Not applicable.
NOTE: Data refer to persons 15 years and over.
Table 2. Time spent in primary activities (1) and percent of the civilian population engaging in each
activity, averages per day on weekdays and weekends, 2012 annual averages
Average hours per Average percent Average hours per
day, civilian engaged in the day for persons who
population activity per day engaged in the
activity
Activity
Weekends Weekends Weekends
Weekdays and Weekdays and Weekdays and
holidays holidays holidays
Total, all activities (2)......................... 24.00 24.00 --- --- --- ---
Personal care activities........................ 9.21 10.13 100.0 99.9 9.21 10.13
Sleeping..................................... 8.45 9.39 99.9 99.9 8.45 9.41
Eating and drinking............................. 1.19 1.39 96.0 95.8 1.24 1.45
Household activities............................ 1.59 2.08 73.0 75.3 2.19 2.77
Housework.................................... .54 .74 33.4 37.5 1.62 1.96
Food preparation and cleanup................. .51 .56 53.4 50.5 .96 1.11
Lawn and garden care......................... .16 .23 9.5 10.5 1.71 2.19
Household management......................... .12 .15 16.2 16.5 .72 .91
Purchasing goods and services................... .68 .81 40.9 42.5 1.67 1.91
Consumer goods purchases..................... .30 .48 36.0 41.2 .83 1.16
Professional and personal care services...... .10 .03 9.1 3.3 1.13 .92
Caring for and helping household members........ .54 .44 26.3 20.4 2.06 2.15
Caring for and helping household children.... .42 .37 21.7 17.3 1.93 2.12
Caring for and helping nonhousehold members..... .17 .21 10.9 11.8 1.55 1.76
Caring for and helping nonhousehold adults... .05 .07 7.1 7.8 .75 .90
Working and work-related activities............. 4.49 1.29 53.3 21.9 8.43 5.91
Working...................................... 4.06 1.15 51.1 20.2 7.95 5.69
Educational activities.......................... .63 .20 9.9 5.3 6.36 3.72
Attending class.............................. .39 .02 7.5 .6 5.24 2.81
Homework and research........................ .17 .16 6.8 4.7 2.54 3.47
Organizational, civic, and religious activities .22 .55 11.3 19.7 1.98 2.79
Religious and spiritual activities........... .07 .33 6.1 15.9 1.23 2.05
Volunteering (organizational and civic
activities).................................... .12 .15 6.0 6.1 1.97 2.50
Leisure and sports.............................. 4.85 6.57 96.0 96.9 5.06 6.78
Socializing and communicating................ .61 1.05 35.8 40.4 1.71 2.61
Watching television.......................... 2.58 3.42 79.3 81.8 3.26 4.18
Participating in sports, exercise, and
recreation..................................... .30 .37 20.0 17.7 1.50 2.11
Telephone calls, mail, and e-mail............... .16 .13 21.2 16.5 .78 .81
Other activities, not elsewhere classified...... .25 .21 14.7 12.7 1.71 1.64
1 A primary activity refers to an individual's main activity. Other activities done simultaneously are not
included.
2 All major activity categories include related travel time. See Technical Note for activity category
definitions.
- Not applicable.
NOTE: Data refer to persons 15 years and over.
Table 3. Time spent in primary activities (1) for the civilian population by age, sex, race, Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, marital status, and
educational attainment, 2012 annual averages
Average hours per day spent in primary activities (2)
Caring Organiza- Other
Characteristic Personal Purchas- Caring for and Working Educa- tional, Telephone activi-
care Eating Household ing goods for and helping and work- tional civic, Leisure calls, ties, not
activi- and activi- and helping non- related activi- and and mail, and elsewhere
ties drinking ties services household household activi- ties religious sports e-mail classi-
members members ties activi- fied
ties
Total, 15 years and over........ 9.49 1.25 1.74 0.72 0.51 0.18 3.53 0.50 0.32 5.37 0.16 0.24
15 to 19 years................ 10.44 1.00 .67 .55 .13 .18 1.05 3.35 .27 5.86 .19 .31
20 to 24 years................ 9.82 1.20 .85 .54 .58 .14 3.61 1.09 .18 5.55 .19 .26
25 to 34 years................ 9.46 1.23 1.49 .71 1.03 .13 4.59 .40 .19 4.42 .11 .24
35 to 44 years................ 9.21 1.20 1.82 .73 1.05 .12 4.82 .21 .30 4.27 .09 .18
45 to 54 years................ 9.20 1.19 1.87 .70 .39 .20 4.92 .06 .33 4.81 .12 .22
55 to 64 years................ 9.27 1.31 2.07 .86 .15 .27 3.68 .03 .39 5.59 .17 .22
65 to 74 years................ 9.41 1.41 2.53 .85 .11 .25 1.39 .01 .49 7.10 .20 .26
75 years and over............. 9.89 1.52 2.42 .73 .12 .17 .31 ~0 .52 7.68 .30 .33
Men, 15 years and over......... 9.22 1.30 1.29 .60 .35 .16 4.17 .53 .26 5.79 .11 .23
15 to 19 years................ 10.09 1.04 .58 .37 .10 .19 .86 3.53 .25 6.55 .16 .28
20 to 24 years................ 9.42 1.17 .64 .47 (3) .15 3.51 1.02 .22 6.63 .16 .32
25 to 34 years................ 9.17 1.24 1.06 .56 .62 .13 5.39 .42 .15 4.93 .09 .25
35 to 44 years................ 8.94 1.28 1.20 .62 .74 .09 6.02 .19 .24 4.45 .06 .18
45 to 54 years................ 9.01 1.25 1.34 .58 .34 .15 5.65 .05 .26 5.09 .08 .21
55 to 64 years................ 8.95 1.36 1.65 .72 .11 .23 4.43 (3) .28 5.97 .12 .16
65 to 74 years................ 9.22 1.56 2.06 .72 .09 .23 1.72 ~0 .46 7.64 .11 .19
75 years and over............. 9.77 1.66 1.89 .67 .10 .16 .55 ~0 .42 8.11 .25 .43
Women, 15 years and over....... 9.74 1.20 2.17 .84 .66 .20 2.94 .47 .38 4.97 .20 .25
15 to 19 years................ 10.81 .96 .76 .73 .17 .17 1.25 3.15 .29 5.14 .23 .34
20 to 24 years................ 10.21 1.23 1.06 .61 .86 .13 3.70 1.16 .14 4.48 .23 .20
25 to 34 years................ 9.74 1.21 1.92 .85 1.42 .12 3.81 .39 .24 3.93 .13 .24
35 to 44 years................ 9.48 1.13 2.40 .84 1.34 .15 3.67 .24 .35 4.09 .13 .18
45 to 54 years................ 9.38 1.14 2.37 .81 .44 .25 4.22 .06 .39 4.55 .16 .23
55 to 64 years................ 9.57 1.25 2.46 .99 .18 .31 2.98 .03 .49 5.24 .22 .27
65 to 74 years................ 9.57 1.28 2.95 .97 .13 .26 1.09 ~0 .51 6.61 .28 .31
75 years and over............. 9.97 1.42 2.78 .77 .13 .18 .15 ~0 .60 7.39 .34 .25
White, 15 years and over....... 9.43 1.27 1.82 .72 .51 .19 3.59 .49 .30 5.30 .15 .23
Men........................... 9.18 1.32 1.36 .59 .35 .16 4.26 .51 .25 5.69 .11 .22
Women......................... 9.67 1.23 2.26 .84 .66 .21 2.96 .46 .36 4.94 .19 .23
Black or African American, 15
years and over............... 9.83 0.92 1.32 0.82 0.44 0.18 3.01 0.45 0.46 6.06 0.20 0.30
Men........................... 9.52 .93 .96 .70 .28 .16 3.37 .42 .37 6.87 .13 .31
Women......................... 10.09 .92 1.62 .92 .57 .19 2.71 .48 .53 5.40 .27 .30
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity,
15 years and over............ 9.83 1.18 1.79 .67 .68 .15 3.51 .77 .29 4.76 .11 .27
Men........................... 9.58 1.20 1.14 .57 .44 .13 4.11 .81 .21 5.49 .08 .25
Women......................... 10.07 1.15 2.43 .78 .93 .17 2.90 .73 .37 4.03 .14 .30
Marital status and sex:
Married, spouse present........ 9.21 1.34 2.07 .78 .73 .18 3.94 .08 .38 4.95 .11 .23
Men........................... 8.97 1.39 1.51 .67 .54 .14 4.79 .05 .33 5.30 .08 .23
Women......................... 9.45 1.28 2.64 .89 .93 .22 3.06 .12 .42 4.59 .15 .24
Other marital statuses......... 9.78 1.15 1.40 .66 .28 .18 3.11 .94 .26 5.80 .20 .24
Men........................... 9.50 1.19 1.03 .51 .14 .18 3.45 1.08 .18 6.36 .15 .24
Women......................... 10.02 1.12 1.71 .78 .39 .18 2.82 .81 .33 5.34 .24 .25
Educational attainment, 25
years and over:
Less than a high school diploma 10.13 1.12 2.10 .59 .55 .14 2.53 ~0 .30 6.23 .07 .19
High school graduates, no
college..................... 9.50 1.21 2.11 .69 .39 .25 3.39 .07 .30 5.78 .13 .19
Some college or associate
degree...................... 9.27 1.23 1.95 .82 .56 .18 3.84 .20 .36 5.17 .17 .26
Bachelor's degree and higher... 9.01 1.43 1.74 .83 .67 .15 4.54 .20 .39 4.61 .18 .26
1 A primary activity refers to an individual's main activity. Other activities done simultaneously are not included.
2 All major activity categories include related travel time. See Technical Note for activity category definitions.
3 Estimate is suppressed because it does not meet the American Time Use Survey publication standards.
~0 Estimate is approximately zero.
NOTE: Unless otherwise specified, data refer to persons 15 years and over. Persons of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity may be of any race.
Table 4. Employed persons working (1) and time spent working on days worked by full- and part-time status and sex, jobholding status,
educational attainment, and day of week, 2012 annual averages
(Numbers in thousands)
Employed persons who worked Employed persons who worked Employed persons who worked
on an average day on an average weekday on an average Saturday,
Sunday, and holiday
Characteristic Total
employed
Percent Average Percent Average Percent Average
Number of hours of Number(2) of hours of Number(3) of hours of
employed work employed work employed work
Full- and part-time status and sex
Total, 15 years and over (4).............. 150,877 102,817 68.1 7.65 124,530 82.5 7.97 50,621 33.6 5.71
Full-time workers...................... 114,136 83,117 72.8 8.22 101,844 89.2 8.60 38,813 34.0 5.86
Part-time workers...................... 36,741 19,701 53.6 5.24 22,832 62.1 5.26 11,783 32.1 5.18
Men(4)................................... 79,458 55,361 69.7 8.07 67,033 84.4 8.44 27,368 34.4 5.90
Full-time workers...................... 66,470 48,759 73.4 8.46 59,467 89.5 8.87 23,541 35.4 6.02
Part-time workers...................... 12,988 6,602 50.8 5.16 7,675 59.1 5.18 3,773 29.0 5.05
Women(4)................................. 71,419 47,456 66.4 7.16 57,499 80.5 7.44 23,251 32.6 5.48
Full-time workers...................... 47,666 34,358 72.1 7.87 42,378 88.9 8.21 15,265 32.0 5.61
Part-time workers...................... 23,754 13,099 55.1 5.29 15,164 63.8 5.30 7,993 33.6 5.23
Jobholding status
Single jobholders......................... 138,106 92,250 66.8 7.65 113,179 82.0 7.95 42,361 30.7 5.74
Multiple jobholders....................... 12,771 10,567 82.7 7.60 11,328 88.7 8.19 8,559 67.0 5.55
Educational attainment, 25 years and over
Less than a high school diploma........... 9,879 6,563 66.4 7.76 8,099 82.0 8.05 3,337 33.8 6.30
High school graduates, no college......... 36,749 24,589 66.9 7.97 30,220 82.2 8.15 10,893 29.6 6.76
Some college or associate degree.......... 33,843 22,569 66.7 7.86 27,596 81.5 8.14 10,493 31.0 6.08
Bachelor's degree and higher.............. 49,670 36,252 73.0 7.57 44,128 88.8 8.09 16,996 34.2 4.21
1 Includes work at main and other job(s), and excludes travel related to work.
2 Number was derived by multiplying the "Total employed" by the percent of employed persons who worked on an average weekday.
3 Number was derived by multiplying the "Total employed" by the percent of employed persons who worked on an average Saturday, Sunday, and
holiday.
4 Includes workers whose hours vary.
NOTE: Unless otherwise specified, data refer to persons 15 years and over.
Table 5. Employed persons working (1) on main job and time spent working on days worked by class of worker, occupation, earnings, and day of
week, 2012 annual averages
(Numbers in thousands)
Employed persons who worked Employed persons who worked Employed persons who worked
on an average day on an average weekday on an average Saturday,
Sunday, and holiday
Characteristic Total
employed
Percent Average Percent Average Percent Average
Number of hours of Number(2) of hours of Number(3) of hours of
employed work employed work employed work
Class of worker (main job only)
Wage and salary workers................... 139,487 93,584 67.1 7.65 114,995 82.4 7.94 42,631 30.6 5.74
Self-employed workers (4)................. 11,135 7,611 68.4 6.87 8,686 78.0 7.11 4,694 42.2 5.66
Occupation (main job only) (5)
Management, business, and financial
operations............................. 23,190 16,964 73.2 7.86 20,835 89.8 8.38 7,751 33.4 4.53
Professional and related.................. 36,444 24,962 68.5 7.31 30,225 82.9 7.68 11,265 30.9 4.72
Service................................... 25,770 15,576 60.4 7.45 18,265 70.9 7.57 9,627 37.4 6.93
Sales and related......................... 15,798 10,493 66.4 7.29 11,744 74.3 7.58 7,210 45.6 6.04
Office and administrative support......... 18,628 12,087 64.9 7.49 15,815 84.9 7.68 3,340 17.9 5.36
Farming, fishing, and forestry............ (7) (7) (7) 6.92 (7) (7) 6.94 (7) (7) 6.86
Construction and extraction............... 6,802 4,653 68.4 7.74 5,940 87.3 8.00 1,680 24.7 5.60
Installation, maintenance, and repair..... 5,395 3,627 67.2 8.35 4,815 89.2 8.59 1,277 23.7 6.58
Production................................ 8,159 5,593 68.6 7.97 7,208 88.3 8.14 1,954 23.9 6.57
Transportation and material moving........ 8,825 6,036 68.4 8.27 7,563 85.7 8.42 2,487 28.2 7.22
Earnings of full-time wage and salary
workers (single jobholders only) (6)
$0 - $530................................. 23,959 17,024 71.1 8.10 20,962 87.5 8.23 7,646 31.9 7.26
$531 - $830............................... 23,397 15,694 67.1 8.20 20,606 88.1 8.37 5,989 25.6 7.02
$831 - $1,290............................. 23,405 15,959 68.2 8.39 20,504 87.6 8.73 5,660 24.2 5.52
$1,291 and higher......................... 23,554 17,968 76.3 8.31 21,688 92.1 8.96 7,959 33.8 3.60
1 Includes work at main job only and excludes travel related to work.
2 Number was derived by multiplying the "Total employed" by the percent of employed persons who worked on an average weekday.
3 Number was derived by multiplying the "Total employed" by the percent of employed persons who worked on an average Saturday, Sunday, and
holiday.
4 Includes self-employed workers whose businesses are unincorporated. Self-employed workers whose businesses are incorporated are
classified as wage and salary workers.
5 These values were generated using the 2010 Census occupational classification system which was introduced with the 2011 estimates.
Estimates are not strictly comparable to those from earlier years.
6 These values are based on usual weekly earnings. The earnings data are limited to wage and salary workers (both incorporated and
unincorporated self-employed workers are excluded). Each earnings range represents approximately 25 percent of full-time wage and salary
workers who held only one job.
7 Estimate is suppressed because it does not meet the American Time Use Survey publication standards.
NOTE: Data refer to persons 15 years and over.
Table 6. Employed persons working (1) at home and at their workplace and time spent working at each location by full- and part-time status and
sex, jobholding status, and educational attainment, 2012 annual averages
(Numbers in thousands)
Employed persons who worked Employed persons who worked Employed persons who worked
on an average day at their workplace on an at home on an average
average day(2) day(2)(3)
Total
Characteristic employed
Percent Average Percent Average Percent Average
Number of hours of Number of those hours of Number of those hours of
employed work who work at who work at
worked workplace worked home
Full- and part-time status and sex
Total, 15 years and over (4).............. 150,877 102,817 68.1 7.65 86,857 84.5 7.92 23,878 23.2 3.01
Full-time workers...................... 114,136 83,117 72.8 8.22 72,115 86.8 8.35 18,502 22.3 3.19
Part-time workers...................... 36,741 19,701 53.6 5.24 14,742 74.8 5.81 5,376 27.3 2.38
Men (4).................................. 79,458 55,361 69.7 8.07 47,369 85.6 8.27 12,828 23.2 3.07
Full-time workers...................... 66,470 48,759 73.4 8.46 42,695 87.6 8.56 10,828 22.2 3.12
Part-time workers...................... 12,988 6,602 50.8 5.16 4,673 70.8 5.63 2,000 30.3 2.83
Women (4)................................ 71,419 47,456 66.4 7.16 39,488 83.2 7.50 11,050 23.3 2.93
Full-time workers...................... 47,666 34,358 72.1 7.87 29,419 85.6 8.05 7,674 22.3 3.30
Part-time workers...................... 23,754 13,099 55.1 5.29 10,069 76.9 5.89 3,377 25.8 2.11
Jobholding status
Single jobholders......................... 138,106 92,250 66.8 7.65 78,770 85.4 7.92 20,242 21.9 3.02
Multiple jobholders....................... 12,771 10,567 82.7 7.60 8,087 76.5 7.91 3,636 34.4 2.96
Educational attainment, 25 years and over
Less than a high school diploma........... 9,879 6,563 66.4 7.76 6,141 93.6 7.90 357 5.4 3.18
High school graduates, no college......... 36,749 24,589 66.9 7.97 22,285 90.6 8.04 3,118 12.7 3.56
Some college or associate degree.......... 33,843 22,569 66.7 7.86 19,032 84.3 8.18 4,769 21.1 3.17
Bachelor's degree and higher.............. 49,670 36,252 73.0 7.57 28,069 77.4 7.98 13,914 38.4 2.87
1 Includes work at main and other job(s) and at locations other than home or workplace. Excludes travel related to work.
2 Individuals may have worked at more than one location.
3 "Working at home" includes any time persons did work at home and is not restricted to persons whose usual workplace is their home.
4 Includes workers whose hours vary.
NOTE: Unless otherwise specified, data refer to persons 15 years and over.
Table 7. Employed persons working on main job (1) at home and at their workplace and time spent working at each location by class of worker,
occupation, and earnings, 2012 annual averages
(Numbers in thousands)
Employed persons who worked Employed persons who worked Employed persons who worked
on an average day at their workplace on an at home on an average
average day (2) day (2)(3)
Total
Characteristic employed
Percent Average Percent Average Percent Average
Number of hours of Number of those hours of Number of those hours of
employed work who work at who work at
worked workplace worked home
Class of worker (main job only)
Wage and salary workers................... 139,487 93,584 67.1 7.65 81,764 87.4 7.91 18,428 19.7 2.58
Self-employed workers (4)................. 11,135 7,611 68.4 6.87 4,047 53.2 7.08 4,270 56.1 4.86
Occupation (main job only) (5)
Management, business, and financial
operations............................. 23,190 16,964 73.2 7.86 13,107 77.3 8.19 6,028 35.5 3.70
Professional and related.................. 36,444 24,962 68.5 7.31 19,248 77.1 7.85 9,226 37.0 2.58
Service................................... 25,770 15,576 60.4 7.45 13,849 88.9 7.52 1,571 10.1 4.01
Sales and related......................... 15,798 10,493 66.4 7.29 9,008 85.8 7.54 2,245 21.4 3.20
Office and administrative support......... 18,628 12,087 64.9 7.49 11,338 93.8 7.63 1,123 9.3 2.13
Farming, fishing, and forestry............ (7) (7) (7) 6.92 (7) (7) 8.71 (7) (7) 3.12
Construction and extraction............... 6,802 4,653 68.4 7.74 4,139 89.0 7.92 743 16.0 2.50
Installation, maintenance, and repair..... 5,395 3,627 67.2 8.35 3,424 94.4 8.29 534 14.7 (7)
Production................................ 8,159 5,593 68.6 7.97 5,439 97.2 8.08 348 6.2 (7)
Transportation and material moving........ 8,825 6,036 68.4 8.27 5,472 90.7 8.51 432 7.2 1.98
Earnings of full-time wage and salary
workers
(single jobholders only)(6)
$0 - $530................................. 23,959 17,024 71.1 8.10 16,164 94.9 8.17 1,139 6.7 (7)
$531 - $830............................... 23,397 15,694 67.1 8.20 14,894 94.9 8.20 1,381 8.8 2.36
$831 - $1,290............................. 23,405 15,959 68.2 8.39 14,194 88.9 8.55 3,188 20.0 2.53
$1,291 and higher......................... 23,554 17,968 76.3 8.31 14,872 82.8 8.59 6,075 33.8 2.92
1 Includes work at main job only and at locations other than home or workplace. Excludes travel related to work.
2 Individuals may have worked at more than one location.
3 "Working at home" includes any time persons did work at home and is not restricted to persons whose usual workplace is their home.
4 Includes self-employed workers whose businesses are unincorporated. Self-employed workers whose businesses are incorporated are
classified as wage and salary workers.
5 These values were generated using the 2010 Census occupational classification system which was introduced with the 2011 estimates.
Estimates are not strictly comparable to those from earlier years.
6 These values are based on usual weekly earnings. The earnings data are limited to wage and salary workers (both incorporated and
unincorporated self-employed workers are excluded). Each earnings range represents approximately 25 percent of full-time wage and salary
workers who held only one job.
7 Estimate is suppressed because it does not meet the American Time Use Survey publication standards.
NOTE: Data refer to persons 15 years and over.
Table 8. Time spent in primary activities (1) for the civilian population 18 years and over by employment status,
presence and age of youngest household child, and sex, 2012 annual averages
Total
Average hours per day spent in primary activities
Activity Youngest household Youngest household No household
child under 6 child 6-17 children under 18
Total Men Women Total Men Women Total Men Women
Total, all activities (2).............................. 24.00 24.00 24.00 24.00 24.00 24.00 24.00 24.00 24.00
Personal care activities............................. 9.30 8.92 9.60 9.38 9.06 9.66 9.48 9.23 9.73
Sleeping.......................................... 8.67 8.36 8.92 8.61 8.43 8.77 8.70 8.60 8.81
Eating and drinking.................................. 1.14 1.19 1.09 1.19 1.21 1.18 1.31 1.38 1.25
Household activities................................. 1.77 1.11 2.28 1.90 1.27 2.43 1.79 1.41 2.17
Housework......................................... .69 .29 1.00 .71 .30 1.05 .58 .28 .88
Food preparation and cleanup...................... .70 .33 1.00 .64 .31 .93 .48 .29 .67
Lawn and garden care.............................. .08 .13 .04 .17 .24 .11 .22 .29 .15
Household management.............................. .10 .08 .12 .11 .06 .15 .15 .13 .17
Purchasing goods and services........................ .72 .59 .82 .72 .57 .84 .75 .64 .85
Consumer goods purchases.......................... .37 .30 .43 .37 .28 .44 .36 .28 .43
Professional and personal care services........... .07 .03 .10 .05 .03 .07 .10 .08 .11
Caring for and helping household members............. 2.09 1.51 2.54 .82 .62 .99 .06 .05 .06
Caring for and helping household children......... 1.87 1.34 2.28 .62 .45 .76 --- --- ---
Caring for and helping nonhousehold members.......... .09 .07 .11 .10 .07 .13 .23 .20 .25
Caring for and helping nonhousehold adults........ .04 .04 .03 .04 .03 .04 .07 .08 .06
Working and work-related activities.................. 4.05 5.33 3.04 4.34 5.43 3.42 3.44 3.94 2.95
Working........................................... 3.68 4.80 2.80 3.93 4.89 3.12 3.09 3.53 2.66
Educational activities............................... .21 .23 .20 .36 .31 .41 .28 .28 .27
Attending class................................... .09 .15 .05 .15 .12 .17 .11 .09 .13
Homework and research............................. .09 .06 .12 .17 .14 .19 .13 .14 .12
Organizational, civic, and religious activities...... .27 .28 .27 .36 .28 .43 .33 .26 .39
Religious and spiritual activities................ .14 .14 .15 .15 .13 .16 .15 .11 .20
Volunteering (organizational and civic activities) .09 .11 .08 .16 .11 .20 .13 .12 .15
Leisure and sports................................... 4.04 4.49 3.69 4.47 4.90 4.11 5.92 6.26 5.58
Socializing and communicating..................... .76 .81 .72 .68 .73 .64 .74 .70 .77
Watching television............................... 2.08 2.26 1.93 2.37 2.63 2.16 3.23 3.46 3.00
Participating in sports, exercise, and recreation .26 .31 .22 .29 .35 .23 .30 .39 .21
Telephone calls, mail, and e-mail.................... .07 .05 .09 .11 .08 .13 .19 .13 .25
Other activities, not elsewhere classified........... .25 .22 .27 .25 .20 .28 .24 .23 .24
Employed
Total, all activities (2).............................. 24.00 24.00 24.00 24.00 24.00 24.00 24.00 24.00 24.00
Personal care activities............................. 8.98 8.75 9.24 9.18 8.90 9.46 9.15 8.93 9.40
Sleeping.......................................... 8.31 8.17 8.48 8.39 8.25 8.53 8.39 8.30 8.50
Eating and drinking.................................. 1.17 1.24 1.08 1.20 1.23 1.17 1.29 1.35 1.22
Household activities................................. 1.38 1.04 1.77 1.58 1.16 2.00 1.41 1.18 1.69
Housework......................................... .51 .26 .78 .52 .26 .79 .45 .26 .67
Food preparation and cleanup...................... .52 .31 .76 .52 .28 .78 .37 .25 .51
Lawn and garden care.............................. .09 .13 .04 .16 .24 .07 .15 .19 .10
Household management.............................. .10 .09 .10 .10 .06 .15 .12 .11 .15
Purchasing goods and services........................ .67 .56 .80 .68 .52 .83 .68 .57 .80
Consumer goods purchases.......................... .36 .28 .45 .35 .26 .44 .34 .27 .41
Professional and personal care services........... .05 .02 .07 .05 .02 .07 .07 .04 .10
Caring for and helping household members............. 1.77 1.40 2.18 .72 .54 .91 .04 .05 .03
Caring for and helping household children......... 1.55 1.24 1.89 .54 .40 .68 --- --- ---
Caring for and helping nonhousehold members.......... .06 .06 .07 .10 .07 .13 .21 .17 .25
Caring for and helping nonhousehold adults........ .02 .03 .01 .03 .02 .04 .07 .07 .07
Working and work-related activities.................. 5.74 6.30 5.10 5.74 6.55 4.92 5.78 6.12 5.39
Working........................................... 5.27 5.72 4.75 5.25 5.96 4.53 5.29 5.57 4.97
Educational activities............................... .11 .08 .14 .23 .21 .26 .21 .17 .25
Attending class................................... .04 (4) .04 .09 .07 .10 .07 .05 .10
Homework and research............................. .06 .04 .08 .11 .11 .12 .11 .09 .13
Organizational, civic, and religious activities...... .24 .27 .21 .33 .28 .39 .25 .20 .31
Religious and spiritual activities................ .13 .14 .12 .13 .12 .14 .11 .08 .14
Volunteering (organizational and civic activities) .08 .09 .06 .15 .12 .19 .11 .09 .13
Leisure and sports................................... 3.60 4.06 3.09 3.97 4.29 3.65 4.67 5.01 4.26
Socializing and communicating..................... .74 .80 .66 .63 .67 .59 .65 .61 .69
Watching television............................... 1.87 2.14 1.57 2.08 2.30 1.87 2.44 2.71 2.12
Participating in sports, exercise, and recreation .23 .27 .19 .28 .34 .22 .26 .31 .20
Telephone calls, mail, and e-mail.................... .05 .04 .07 .08 .05 .10 .14 .10 .18
Other activities, not elsewhere classified........... .23 .20 .25 .19 .19 .19 .18 .15 .21
Not employed
Total, all activities (2).............................. 24.00 24.00 24.00 24.00 24.00 24.00 24.00 24.00 24.00
Personal care activities............................. 10.03 9.80 10.10 9.99 9.79 10.09 9.95 9.74 10.11
Sleeping.......................................... 9.48 9.30 9.53 9.29 9.29 9.29 9.14 9.11 9.17
Eating and drinking.................................. 1.07 .94 1.11 1.17 1.11 1.20 1.34 1.42 1.29
Household activities................................. 2.64 1.50 2.99 2.86 1.76 3.39 2.32 1.81 2.72
Housework......................................... 1.10 (4) 1.30 1.25 .50 1.62 .77 .32 1.12
Food preparation and cleanup...................... 1.11 .38 1.33 1.00 .48 1.26 .64 .36 .85
Lawn and garden care.............................. .07 .14 .05 .22 .27 .19 .32 .45 .22
Household management.............................. .12 (4) .15 .12 .09 .14 .18 .17 .19
Purchasing goods and services........................ .83 .75 .85 .85 .81 .87 .84 .76 .91
Consumer goods purchases.......................... .40 .41 .40 .42 .37 .44 .39 .30 .45
Professional and personal care services........... .11 (4) .13 .07 (4) .08 .14 .14 .13
Caring for and helping household members............. 2.81 2.06 3.05 1.09 .97 1.15 .08 .05 .10
Caring for and helping household children......... 2.59 1.82 2.82 .86 .72 .92 --- --- ---
Caring for and helping nonhousehold members.......... .17 (4) .17 .13 .10 .15 .25 .25 .26
Caring for and helping nonhousehold adults........ .07 (4) .06 .05 .05 .05 .07 .09 .05
Working and work-related activities (3).............. .25 (4) (4) .15 .28 .08 .15 .17 .14
Working(3)........................................ (4) (4) (4) ~0 (4) ~0 .02 ~0 ~0
Educational activities............................... .44 (4) (4) .74 (4) .74 .37 .46 .30
Attending class................................... .21 (4) .06 .34 (4) .32 .16 .17 .16
Homework and research............................. .16 (4) .16 .32 (4) .33 .16 .23 .11
Organizational, civic, and religious activities...... .34 (4) .35 .45 (4) .51 .44 .38 .49
Religious and spiritual activities................ .17 (4) .18 .19 .15 .21 .22 .15 .27
Volunteering (organizational and civic activities) .13 (4) .12 .19 (4) .24 .17 .17 .17
Leisure and sports................................... 5.01 6.67 4.51 5.96 7.68 5.12 7.67 8.41 7.09
Socializing and communicating..................... .81 .86 .79 .83 1.01 .75 .86 .85 .86
Watching television............................... 2.53 2.85 2.43 3.24 4.15 2.79 4.33 4.75 4.00
Participating in sports, exercise, and recreation .33 .54 .27 .31 .39 .26 .36 .51 .23
Telephone calls, mail, and e-mail.................... .11 .10 .11 .20 (4) .19 .27 .19 .32
Other activities, not elsewhere classified........... .30 (4) .30 .41 (4) .50 .32 .38 .27
1 A primary activity refers to an individual's main activity. Other activities done simultaneously are not
included.
2 All major activity categories include related travel time. See Technical Note for activity category definitions.
3 Estimates include a small amount of work time done by persons who do not meet the American Time Use Survey
definition for employed.
4 Estimate is suppressed because it does not meet the American Time Use Survey publication standards.
~0 Estimate is approximately zero.
--- Not applicable.
Table 9. Time spent caring for household children under 18 by sex of adult (1) and age of youngest child by day of week, average
for the combined years 2008-12
Average hours per day spent caring for household children
Childcare activities Total Weekdays Weekends and holidays
Total Men Women Total Men Women Total Men Women
Persons in households with children under 18 years, total:
Caring for household children as a primary activity...... 1.33 0.91 1.69 1.42 0.92 1.85 1.13 0.89 1.32
Physical care........................................... .43 .24 .60 .46 .25 .64 .37 .22 .50
Education-related activities............................ .10 .06 .14 .13 .08 .18 .03 .02 .04
Reading to/with children................................ .04 .03 .04 .04 .03 .05 .03 .02 .04
Talking to/with children................................ .05 .03 .06 .05 .03 .07 .03 .02 .04
Playing/doing hobbies with children..................... .29 .27 .32 .27 .24 .30 .34 .34 .34
Looking after children.................................. .08 .06 .09 .07 .05 .09 .09 .09 .10
Attending children's events............................. .06 .05 .07 .05 .04 .06 .08 .08 .09
Travel related to care of household children............ .17 .12 .22 .21 .14 .27 .09 .07 .10
Other childcare activities.............................. .11 .06 .15 .13 .07 .18 .06 .03 .07
Persons in households with youngest child 6 to 17 years:
Caring for household children as a primary activity.... .79 .55 1.01 .87 .57 1.13 .61 .49 .72
Physical care......................................... .15 .08 .20 .17 .09 .23 .10 .05 .13
Education-related activities.......................... .12 .07 .16 .15 .09 .21 .04 .03 .05
Reading to/with children.............................. .01 .01 .02 .01 .01 .02 .01 .01 .02
Talking to/with children.............................. .06 .03 .08 .07 .04 .09 .04 .02 .05
Playing/doing hobbies with children................... .07 .09 .06 .06 .08 .05 .10 .11 .08
Looking after children................................ .05 .04 .06 .04 .03 .06 .06 .05 .07
Attending children's events........................... .08 .06 .09 .06 .05 .07 .12 .10 .13
Travel related to care of household children.......... .16 .11 .20 .19 .13 .24 .09 .08 .10
Other childcare activities............................ .09 .05 .13 .11 .06 .15 .05 .03 .07
Persons in households with youngest child under 6 years:
Caring for household children as a primary activity.... 1.98 1.37 2.47 2.08 1.36 2.66 1.74 1.39 2.03
Physical care......................................... .78 .43 1.05 .81 .44 1.10 .70 .42 .92
Education-related activities.......................... .09 .05 .11 .11 .07 .15 .02 .01 .03
Reading to/with children.............................. .06 .05 .07 .06 .05 .07 .05 .04 .06
Talking to/with children.............................. .03 .02 .04 .03 .02 .04 .02 .01 .03
Playing/doing hobbies with children................... .56 .50 .61 .52 .44 .59 .63 .62 .64
Looking after children................................ .11 .09 .13 .11 .08 .13 .13 .13 .13
Attending children's events........................... .04 .03 .04 .03 .02 .05 .05 .06 .04
Travel related to care of household children.......... .19 .13 .24 .24 .15 .30 .08 .06 .09
Other childcare activities............................ .13 .07 .18 .16 .09 .22 .06 .03 .08
1 Persons 18 years and over living in households with children under 18, whether or not they provided childcare.
Table 10. Time spent providing secondary childcare for household children under 13 by sex of adult(1) and age of youngest child by day
of week, average for the combined years 2008-12
Average hours per day spent caring for household children (3)
Childcare activities (2) Total Weekdays Weekends and holidays
Total Men Women Total Men Women Total Men Women
Persons in households with children under 13 years, total........ 5.16 4.15 6.00 4.19 3.06 5.13 7.44 6.69 8.07
Caring for household children as a secondary activity in
conjunction with:
Personal care activities...................................... .25 .16 .33 .22 .14 .29 .33 .22 .42
Household activities.......................................... 1.19 .68 1.61 1.01 .48 1.45 1.61 1.15 2.00
Purchasing goods and services................................. .35 .26 .42 .27 .17 .35 .53 .46 .59
Working and work-related activities........................... .20 .19 .21 .23 .20 .25 .14 .15 .12
Eating and drinking........................................... .65 .58 .71 .53 .44 .60 .93 .89 .97
Leisure and sports............................................ 2.08 1.95 2.19 1.59 1.39 1.76 3.22 3.25 3.20
Other activities.............................................. .44 .34 .53 .34 .24 .43 .68 .56 .77
Persons in households with youngest child 6 to 12 years, total 4.78 4.02 5.46 3.72 2.97 4.38 7.26 6.47 7.96
Caring for household children as a secondary activity in
conjunction with:
Personal care activities.................................... .23 .16 .30 .20 .14 .26 .30 .20 .39
Household activities........................................ 1.07 .66 1.43 .83 .44 1.17 1.62 1.17 2.03
Purchasing goods and services............................... .28 .22 .34 .20 .14 .25 .49 .40 .57
Working and work-related activities......................... .21 .20 .22 .23 .21 .25 .16 .17 .15
Eating and drinking......................................... .58 .52 .64 .46 .40 .51 .87 .80 .93
Leisure and sports.......................................... 1.99 1.94 2.03 1.51 1.43 1.57 3.11 3.14 3.08
Other activities............................................ .42 .33 .51 .30 .22 .37 .71 .58 .83
Persons in households with youngest child under 6 years, total 5.42 4.24 6.37 4.52 3.12 5.62 7.56 6.85 8.14
Caring for household children as a secondary activity in
conjunction with:
Personal care activities.................................... .27 .17 .35 .24 .14 .31 .34 .23 .44
Household activities........................................ 1.28 .70 1.74 1.14 .51 1.64 1.60 1.13 1.98
Purchasing goods and services............................... .39 .29 .47 .32 .19 .42 .56 .51 .60
Working and work-related activities......................... .19 .18 .20 .22 .20 .24 .12 .14 .10
Eating and drinking......................................... .70 .62 .76 .58 .48 .65 .98 .95 1.00
Leisure and sports.......................................... 2.14 1.95 2.30 1.65 1.35 1.89 3.30 3.33 3.28
Other activities............................................ .46 .34 .55 .37 .25 .47 .66 .56 .74
1 Persons 18 years and over living in households with children under 13 years, whether or not they provided childcare.
2 All major activity categories include related travel time. See Technical Note for activity category definitions.
3 Secondary childcare time is defined as time one has a child under 13 years "in his or her care" while doing something else as a main
activity; information on secondary childcare is not collected for children over 12 years. Estimates include a small amount of care
provided to own, nonhousehold children.
Table 11. Time spent in leisure and sports activities for the civilian population by selected characteristics, 2012 annual averages
Average hours per day spent in leisure and sports activities
Participating in sports, Relaxing/ Playing games and computer Other leisure and sports
Total, all leisure and sports activities exercise, and recreation Socializing and communicating Watching TV Reading thinking use for leisure activities, including
travel(1)
Characteristic
Week- Week- Week- Week- Week- Week- Week- Week-
Total, all Week- ends Week- ends Week- ends Week- ends Week- ends Week- ends Week- ends Week- ends
days days and days and days and days and days and days and days and days and
holi- holi- holi- holi- holi- holi- holi- holi-
days days days days days days days days
Sex
Men..................................... 5.79 5.15 7.28 0.36 0.54 0.60 1.00 2.71 3.93 0.25 0.29 0.33 0.33 0.49 0.55 0.41 0.64
Women................................... 4.97 4.57 5.90 .25 .21 .62 1.10 2.47 2.94 .36 .44 .24 .29 .32 .36 .32 .56
Age
Total, 15 years and over................ 5.37 4.85 6.57 .30 .37 .61 1.05 2.58 3.42 .31 .37 .28 .31 .41 .45 .36 .60
15 to 19 years....................... 5.86 5.25 7.26 .73 .71 .84 1.34 1.98 2.99 .11 .12 .17 .17 .77 1.01 .65 .92
20 to 24 years....................... 5.55 5.19 6.40 .34 .48 1.01 1.24 2.12 2.91 .16 .13 .16 .22 .87 .78 .54 .64
25 to 34 years....................... 4.42 3.82 5.82 .27 .36 .46 1.20 2.10 2.81 .12 .19 .21 .21 .37 .47 .29 .59
35 to 44 years....................... 4.27 3.59 5.85 .24 .37 .49 1.08 1.98 3.05 .17 .25 .21 .24 .26 .33 .24 .54
45 to 54 years....................... 4.81 4.19 6.26 .19 .38 .53 .93 2.37 3.43 .25 .31 .25 .36 .29 .31 .30 .56
55 to 64 years....................... 5.59 5.02 6.94 .23 .26 .52 .93 2.92 4.08 .42 .45 .34 .36 .25 .33 .35 .52
65 to 74 years....................... 7.10 6.94 7.47 .36 .31 .76 .81 3.92 4.25 .63 .81 .43 .39 .43 .34 .41 .57
75 years and over.................... 7.68 7.54 8.04 .27 .18 .69 .98 4.25 4.26 .94 1.03 .61 .62 .39 .34 .38 .62
Race and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity
White................................... 5.30 4.78 6.55 .31 .40 .62 1.06 2.50 3.34 .34 .40 .26 .28 .38 .45 .37 .61
Black or African American............... 6.06 5.63 7.01 .21 .19 .62 1.08 3.38 4.23 .17 .17 .43 .48 .46 .35 .35 .52
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity............ 4.76 4.20 6.06 .32 .41 .52 1.16 2.29 3.27 .09 .15 .35 .29 .30 .29 .33 .48
Employment status
Employed................................ 4.34 3.68 5.92 .23 .36 .51 1.04 1.94 3.01 .21 .28 .21 .24 .28 .39 .30 .60
Full-time workers.................... 4.09 3.34 5.87 .22 .40 .43 1.01 1.82 3.05 .19 .28 .20 .25 .21 .33 .26 .56
Part-time workers.................... 5.11 4.72 6.08 .26 .25 .75 1.16 2.31 2.89 .28 .27 .23 .22 .48 .57 .43 .72
Not employed............................ 6.97 6.72 7.53 .41 .38 .78 1.07 3.61 4.03 .47 .50 .39 .41 .61 .54 .46 .60
Earnings of full-time wage and salary
workers
(single jobholders only)(2)
$0 - $530............................... 4.41 3.82 5.80 0.16 0.19 0.46 0.96 2.36 3.22 0.17 0.18 0.25 0.31 0.17 0.39 0.26 0.55
$531 - $830............................. 4.33 3.39 6.17 .17 .41 .47 1.14 1.81 3.21 .15 .24 .23 .32 .26 .36 .30 .49
$831 - $1,290........................... 4.18 3.36 6.04 .27 .46 .47 .97 1.74 3.19 .20 .28 .18 .24 .22 .34 .28 .58
$1,291 and higher....................... 3.82 3.00 6.02 .29 .54 .37 1.07 1.51 2.93 .23 .36 .12 .14 .24 .30 .24 .68
Presence and age of children
No household children under 18.......... 5.93 5.46 7.03 .29 .37 .64 .98 2.96 3.76 .40 .48 .32 .37 .46 .48 .40 .58
Household children under 18............. 4.45 3.86 5.82 .32 .37 .57 1.17 1.97 2.86 .15 .18 .22 .21 .32 .39 .31 .63
Children 13 to 17 years, none younger 5.00 4.48 6.31 .43 .51 .61 1.26 2.19 3.06 .21 .23 .25 .17 .37 .34 .42 .74
Children 6 to 12 years, none younger 4.44 3.82 5.90 .32 .32 .51 1.04 1.95 2.96 .16 .21 .24 .22 .35 .47 .30 .67
Youngest child under 6 years......... 4.12 3.51 5.48 .25 .33 .60 1.22 1.84 2.68 .11 .13 .18 .23 .27 .36 .25 .53
Marital status and sex
Married, spouse present................. 4.95 4.43 6.18 .26 .34 .55 1.02 2.42 3.27 .36 .40 .27 .28 .29 .33 .30 .55
Men.................................. 5.30 4.68 6.79 .27 .43 .58 .96 2.63 3.88 .32 .34 .30 .29 .26 .35 .32 .54
Women................................ 4.59 4.19 5.54 .24 .25 .53 1.07 2.20 2.63 .40 .47 .23 .27 .31 .30 .27 .55
Other marital statuses.................. 5.80 5.30 6.97 .34 .41 .67 1.09 2.76 3.57 .25 .34 .29 .34 .53 .57 .44 .65
Men.................................. 6.36 5.71 7.82 .45 .67 .63 1.04 2.80 3.98 .18 .23 .36 .37 .77 .76 .52 .76
Women................................ 5.34 4.95 6.24 .25 .18 .71 1.13 2.72 3.22 .32 .42 .24 .30 .34 .41 .37 .56
Educational attainment, 25 years
and over
Less than a high school diploma......... 6.23 5.85 7.03 .14 .21 .66 1.00 3.72 4.38 .18 .19 .64 .66 .26 .22 .26 .36
High school graduates, no college....... 5.78 5.27 7.01 .19 .30 .53 .98 3.26 4.06 .29 .38 .40 .41 .29 .33 .31 .56
Some college or associate degree........ 5.17 4.64 6.38 .24 .34 .55 1.03 2.61 3.44 .35 .39 .21 .27 .37 .39 .31 .53
Bachelor's degree and higher............ 4.61 4.05 5.95 .35 .39 .52 1.00 1.88 2.74 .45 .57 .18 .17 .33 .41 .35 .67
1 Includes other leisure and sports activities, not elsewhere classified, and travel related to leisure and sports activities.
2 These values are based on usual weekly earnings. The earnings data are limited to wage and salary workers (both incorporated and unincorporated self-employed workers are excluded). Each earnings range represents approximately 25 percent of full-time wage and salary workers who held only
one job.
NOTE: Unless otherwise specified, data refer to persons 15 years and over. Persons of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity may be of any race.
Table 12. Average hours per day spent in primary activities (1) for the civilian population, 2012 quarterly and annual
averages
(Not seasonally adjusted)
2012
Activity Quarterly averages
Annual
average
I II III IV
Total, all activities (2).............................. 24.00 24.00 24.00 24.00 24.00
Personal care activities............................. 9.62 9.52 9.41 9.40 9.49
Sleeping.......................................... 8.88 8.73 8.67 8.65 8.73
Eating and drinking.................................. 1.24 1.26 1.25 1.24 1.25
Household activities................................. 1.67 1.74 1.77 1.79 1.74
Housework......................................... .63 .54 .59 .64 .60
Food preparation and cleanup...................... .52 .49 .51 .59 .53
Lawn and garden care.............................. .10 .27 .25 .12 .18
Household management.............................. .13 .13 .13 .12 .13
Purchasing goods and services........................ .75 .63 .71 .79 .72
Consumer goods purchases.......................... .35 .31 .33 .42 .35
Professional and personal care services........... .10 .06 .09 .07 .08
Caring for and helping household members............. .52 .49 .47 .56 .51
Caring for and helping household children......... .42 .38 .37 .44 .40
Caring for and helping nonhousehold members.......... .19 .19 .19 .16 .18
Caring for and helping nonhousehold adults........ .06 .07 .06 .05 .06
Working and work-related activities.................. 3.52 3.70 3.54 3.38 3.53
Working........................................... 3.17 3.34 3.20 3.05 3.19
Educational activities............................... .57 .46 .36 .61 .50
Attending class................................... .35 .28 .17 .31 .28
Homework and research............................. .18 .13 .14 .23 .17
Organizational, civic, and religious activities...... .33 .36 .30 .30 .32
Religious and spiritual activities................ .15 .16 .16 .13 .15
Volunteering (organizational and civic activities) .13 .15 .10 .13 .13
Leisure and sports................................... 5.17 5.28 5.63 5.37 5.37
Socializing and communicating..................... .66 .82 .78 .71 .74
Watching television............................... 2.78 2.60 2.97 2.99 2.83
Participating in sports, exercise, and recreation .32 .37 .37 .23 .32
Telephone calls, mail, and e-mail.................... .16 .13 .14 .18 .16
Other activities, not elsewhere classified........... .26 .25 .22 .22 .24
1 A primary activity refers to an individual's main activity. Other activities done simultaneously are not included.
2 All major activity categories include related travel time. See Technical Note for activity category definitions.
NOTE: Data refer to persons 15 years and over.
United States Department of Labor
