The US workers' perception of lack of leisure is in keeping with reality of the USA when you consider an increase in hours worked _per year_, both for individuals, male and female, and households.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics says that "Workers Are on the Job More Hours over the Course of the Year" (February 1997, <http://www.bls.gov/opub/ils/pdf/opbils10.pdf>):
Average Annual Work Hours
Men Women 1976 1,805 1,293 1993 1,905 1,526 1976-93 change 100 233 Age-adjusted change 62 193
See, also, the dearth of paid vacation in the USA, especially for non-unionized workers with short lengths of service: "Paid Vacation in Private Industry," 3 June 2004, <http://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2004/jun/wk1/art03.htm>.
Here's a table that presents useful international comparison of annual hours worked: "Table F. Average Annual Hours Actually Worked per Person in Employment," <http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/53/15/36900060.pdf>. Calculated on this basis, the annual hours worked per person peaked in the mid-1990s in the USA, but US workers probably continue to feel the family time crunch -- especially paucity of paid vacation time spent together -- as long as more and more women work for longer and longer hours over the course of the year. -- Yoshie