Record working hours in Germany: Women now work over 24 hours!

Record working hours in Germany: Women now work over 24 hours!

There are signs of change in the working world in Germany. A new report from the Federal Institute for Population Research (BiB) shows that average working hours have risen to a record high of 29 hours per week since reunification. What is particularly interesting is the trend that women worked an average of 19 hours in 1991, but are now working over 24 hours per week. This was made clear by Bild.

Although men work a similar amount today as they did 30 years ago, the gender gap in working hours is decreasing. Instead of the previous 14 hours, the difference is now just over 9 hours. The background to these developments could be the increasing demands on the labor market and the increasing shortage of skilled workers. For example, there are voices calling for longer working hours in order to counteract the shortage of skilled workers, which Destatis confirms.

Overview of the world of work

The total working time of the population between 20 and 64 years is 29 hours per week. It was found that unemployed people with zero hours per week were included in this calculation. For full-time employees, the average weekly working time is 40.2 hours, which almost corresponds to the EU level of 40.3 hours. In comparison, the part-time rate in Germany is 29%, while the EU average is 18%. This is also reflected in the average weekly working time for part-time workers, which is 21.8 hours in Germany, as Destatis notes.

What is particularly noteworthy is that part-time employment in Germany continues to rise. Eurostat data shows that the part-time rate in the Netherlands is the highest in the EU at 43%. In Denmark, part-time workers work the least, with an average of 18.5 hours per week. Against this background, it becomes clear that working time arrangements vary greatly in Europe: people in Greece worked the longest, at 41.0 hours per week, which Statista confirms.

Outlook for future developments

The compatibility of work and family is becoming more and more important - an aspect that Prof. Christa Katharina Spieß also emphasizes. She advocates the expansion of family-friendly structures, especially in the area of ​​child day care, in order to make it easier for mothers to access the labor market. A step in this direction could be the introduction of digital recording systems, which according to the coalition agreement are to be implemented in 2025.

It remains exciting to see how working hours will develop in Germany. It is clear that society is facing challenges that require creative solutions. The statistics show that despite the increased working hours, there is still a lot of potential to optimize the working world for everyone involved.