Americans work very long hours and have unusually little vacation time.

FORBES: Quality of Life in America

Many work very long hours and receive little food, no time off and pay that is a fraction of any minimum wage, if it materialises at all.

ECONOMIST: Domestic workers in the Middle East have a horrible time

One major concern is that crowdsourced labor risks creating what Harvard Law School professor Jonathan Zittrain has called "digital sweatshops, " where workers who may be underage work long hours on mind-numbing tasks for very little money -- or, if the work is structured as a game, for no money at all.

WSJ: Small firms, Start-ups Drive Crowdsourcing Growth

Australia also ranks poorly in terms of work-life balance with more than 14% of employees working very long hours, well above the OECD average of 9%.

WSJ: Australia Tops 'Better Life' List