With significantly less optimism in the Chinese economy, only 22.2 percent of respondents gave a definite "yes" to a MRIC survey in terms of the possibility of seeking a job change in 2013, while the figure was 33.2 percent a year ago.

Executive recruitment company MRIC said in its 2013 Talent Report released on Monday that Chinese mainland professionals are increasingly aware of life-quality issues. Given the longer distances needed to travel to work and days away from home, flexible time is the biggest driver behind the desire for greater work/life balance, which is particularly marked among women on the Chinese mainland.

And while junior professionals are still ambitious enough to seek personal development in the earlier years of their careers, most middle professionals, or 40.6 percent of respondents, said that jobs should meet flexible working needs.

Most top and senior professionals, or 39.9 percent of the respondents, said that fulfilling family obligations is the most important factor for them at present.

As a result, some employers in China have started to implement remote working policies such as working from home one day each week or have Friday afternoons off in return for longer working hours on other days.

MRIC recommended that employers consider implementing similar policies and practices in order to attract and retain women and younger professionals, who are not necessarily low performers but have different work/life balance needs.