Annual working hours per worker in New Zealand
New Zealand: Annual working hours per worker was 1,708 hours per worker in 2023. ▼ Falling
Annual working hours per worker in New Zealand, 1970–2023
Source: Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025); Huberman and Minns (2005) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hours per worker.
Analysis
New Zealand recorded 1,708 hours per worker for annual working hours per worker in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.2% on the previous year and down 1.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual working hours per worker in New Zealand peaked at 1,835 hours per worker in 1970 and was at its lowest, 1,688 hours per worker, in 2021.
New Zealand ranks 91st of 130 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 54 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 1,814 hours per worker | 1,793 hours per worker | 1,835 hours per worker | 10 |
| 1980s | 1,798 hours per worker | 1,764 hours per worker | 1,824 hours per worker | 10 |
| 1990s | 1,798 hours per worker | 1,766 hours per worker | 1,826 hours per worker | 10 |
| 2000s | 1,772 hours per worker | 1,713 hours per worker | 1,806 hours per worker | 10 |
| 2010s | 1,725 hours per worker | 1,701 hours per worker | 1,742 hours per worker | 10 |
| 2020s | 1,700 hours per worker | 1,688 hours per worker | 1,708 hours per worker | 4 |
Countries ranked near New Zealand
More work & labour data for New Zealand
- Legislation on sexual harassment in employment 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Women can take the same jobs as men 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Criminal sanctions or compensation for workplace sexual harassment 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15-6 82.6% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15+) 74.7% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15-64) 85.9% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15 79.2% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, total (%) 65.8% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, male (%) 65.9% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, female (%) 65.6% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual working hours per worker in New Zealand?
- Annual working hours per worker in New Zealand was 1,708 hours per worker in 2023, according to Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025); Huberman and Minns (2005) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest annual working hours per worker recorded in New Zealand?
- The highest recorded value was 1,835 hours per worker in 1970.
- What is the lowest annual working hours per worker recorded in New Zealand?
- The lowest recorded value was 1,688 hours per worker in 2021.
- How does New Zealand rank for annual working hours per worker?
- New Zealand ranks 91st out of 130 countries with data for 2023.
- Is annual working hours per worker rising or falling in New Zealand?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this New Zealand data come from?
- The figures come from Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025); Huberman and Minns (2005) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Annual working hours per worker. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Average working hours per worker in a given year.