Who works the hardest in Europe? The countries with the longest and shortest working weeks
People in some European countries work nearly eight hours more a week than those in others, according to Eurostat. Experts point to collective bargaining, part-time work and economic structure as key drivers of the gap.
New Eurostat figures reveal stark differences in working hours across Europe.
People in the EU work an average of 35.9 hours per week, according to the latest data on actual working hours from the bloc's statistical office. The figure covers full-time and part-time workers aged 20 to 64 in their main job.
The data also highlights significant differences between countries, raising questions about why some Europeans work much longer hours than others.
Balkan countries record the longest working hours
Within the EU, actual weekly working hours range from 31.9 hours in the Netherlands to 39.6 hours in Greece. When EU candidate countries and EFTA members are included, the figure rises to 42.4 hours in Turkey. Two other candidate countries closely follow: Bosnia and Herzegovina (40.9 hours) and Serbia (40.6 hours).
These are the only countries where average working hours exceed 40 hours per week, equivalent to more than eight hours a day across a five-day working week.
Greece (39.6 hours), North Macedonia (39.5 hours) and Bulgaria (38.7 hours) come next. Balkan countries dominate the rankings for the longest working weeks, with Greece and Turkey often considered part of the broader Balkan region.
“In no country do workers 'choose' the hours they work: rather, they work a 'normal' set of hours (the latter being influenced by employers). Lower productivity may explain the longer hours in the above countries plus the lack of worker power,” Professor David Spencer of the University of Leeds told Euronews Business.
Jorge Cabrita, senior research manager at Eurofound, said differences in working-time setting regimes may also help explain why some countries record longer working hours than others.
The Netherlands has the shortest working hours
The Netherlands stands out as the country with the shortest average working week in Europe, with people working just 31.9 hours per week.
Cabrita noted that part-time workers account for nearly 43% of total employment in the Netherlands, a significantly higher share than in any other EU member state. The country also has one of the shortest average collectively agreed working weeks in the bloc.
“The Netherlands has shifted to more part-time working that has helped to reduce the average working week; however, the working week for full-time workers is still closer to 40 hours,” Spencer told Euronews Business.
Germany, Norway and Denmark follow at 33.9 hours, meaning workers in the Netherlands work around two hours less per week than those in the next closest countries.
Average working hours are also below 35 hours per week in Austria (34.0), Belgium (34.3) and Finland (34.7). In these seven countries, the average working day amounts to less than seven hours across a five-day working week.
Germany works fewer hours than France, Italy and Spain
Germany records the shortest working week among the EU's four largest economies, at 33.9 hours. Workers in Germany put in 1.7 fewer hours per week than those in France (35.6 hours).
Spain (36.3 hours) records the longest working week among the four largest EU economies, while Italy (36.1 hours) also sits above the EU average of 35.9 hours. The gap between Germany and both countries exceeds two hours per week.
“Shorter working hours in Germany, for example, partly reflect the strength of unions and the positive effect of collective bargaining,” Spencer said.
Elsewhere, average weekly working hours stand at 38.7 in Poland, 38.2 in Romania, 37.5 in Czechia, 37.4 in Hungary, 35.9 in Switzerland, 35.4 in Sweden and 35.1 in Ireland.
Why do working hours vary so widely?
In general, Northern and Western European countries tend to have shorter working weeks than their Eastern and Central European counterparts.
Cabrita pointed to working-time setting regimes, employment structures and broader economic structures as key drivers of cross-country differences.
The role of trade unions and collective bargaining
Cabrita said countries where trade unions and collective bargaining play a larger role in setting working-time limits tend to have shorter actual working hours.
He added that stronger collective bargaining is also associated with less overtime and greater compliance with labour regulations.
The impact of part-time and self-employment
Employment structure — including how workers are distributed across occupations, sectors, employment statuses and contract types — also plays an important role.
Cabrita noted that the larger the share of part-time employment, the shorter the average working hours tend to be.
Self-employed workers, who generally have greater autonomy over their schedules, tend to work longer hours than employees, especially if they employ others.
Economic structure also matters. The relative weight of different sectors within an economy can influence average working hours, as some industries typically require longer working schedules than others.
Working hours vary significantly by sector
Skilled agricultural, forestry and fishery workers record the longest working week in the EU, at 42 hours, followed by managers (40.6 hours) and armed forces occupations (39.4 hours).
At the other end of the scale, workers in elementary occupations record the shortest average working week, at 31.8 hours, followed by clerical support workers (34.0 hours) and service and sales workers (34.5 hours).
