Long usual weekly working hours β€” Employment in Europe

Europe: Long usual weekly working hours β€” Employment was 27,312 Persons in 2022. β–² Rising

Latest (2022)
27,312 Persons
Change on year
up 1.0%
Rank
2nd
of 7 regions
All-time high
52,262 Persons
in 1997
All-time low
12,103 Persons
in 1984
Years of data
40
1983–2022

Long usual weekly working hours β€” Employment in Europe, 1983–2022

10.0k20.0k30.0k40.0k50.0k1983200220221983: 12.6k Persons1984: 12.1k Persons1985: 13.0k Persons1986: 13.1k Persons1987: 18.2k Persons1988: 26.9k Persons1989: 28.6k Persons1990: 28.4k Persons1991: 31.9k Persons1992: 30.8k Persons1993: 34.0k Persons1994: 35.9k Persons1995: 41.2k Persons1996: 40.2k Persons1997: 52.3k Persons1998: 50.1k Persons1999: 48.8k Persons2000: 48.4k Persons2001: 49.1k Persons2002: 36.9k Persons2003: 37.6k Persons2004: 34.2k Persons2005: 35.2k Persons2006: 35.2k Persons2007: 34.8k Persons2008: 34.7k Persons2009: 33.2k Persons2010: 33.6k Persons2011: 34.0k Persons2012: 33.5k Persons2013: 33.0k Persons2014: 32.7k Persons2015: 32.2k Persons2016: 31.5k Persons2017: 31.0k Persons2018: 29.9k Persons2019: 28.8k Persons2020: 25.6k Persons2021: 27.0k Persons2022: 27.3k Persons

Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Persons.

Analysis

The most recent figure for long usual weekly working hours β€” employment in Europe is 27,312 Persons, measured in 2022.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.0% on the previous year and down 18.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, long usual weekly working hours β€” employment in Europe peaked at 52,262 Persons in 1997 and was at its lowest, 12,103 Persons, in 1984.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 40 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 17,796 Persons 12,103 Persons 28,617 Persons 7
1990s 39,352 Persons 28,424 Persons 52,262 Persons 10
2000s 37,927 Persons 33,172 Persons 49,138 Persons 10
2010s 32,029 Persons 28,791 Persons 34,038 Persons 10
2020s 26,666 Persons 25,646 Persons 27,312 Persons 3

Countries ranked near Europe

  1. 1 OECD 75,837 Persons compare
  2. 2 Namibia 30,135 Persons compare
  3. 3 Indonesia 27,418 Persons compare
  4. 4 Mexico 14,632 Persons compare
  5. 5 Brazil 10,154 Persons compare

See the full ranking of 56 places β†’

More work & labour data for Europe

All data for Europe β†’

Frequently asked questions

What is long usual weekly working hours β€” employment in Europe?
Long usual weekly working hours β€” employment in Europe was 27,312 Persons in 2022, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
What is the highest long usual weekly working hours β€” employment recorded in Europe?
The highest recorded value was 52,262 Persons in 1997.
What is the lowest long usual weekly working hours β€” employment recorded in Europe?
The lowest recorded value was 12,103 Persons in 1984.
How does Europe rank for long usual weekly working hours β€” employment?
Europe ranks 2nd out of 7 regions with data for 2022.
Is long usual weekly working hours β€” employment rising or falling in Europe?
Over the last ten years it is down 18.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Europe data come from?
The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Long usual weekly working hours β€” Employment. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Long usual weekly working hours β€” Employment in Europe. Statizoid, drawing on Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Retrieved 20 August 2026, from https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/long-usual-weekly-working-hours-employment/europe/

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About this data

Indicator
Long usual weekly working hours β€” Employment
Unit
Persons
Source
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Licence
OECD Terms and Conditions (attribution required)
Coverage
56 places, 1,768 data points, 1976–2025
Last refreshed

This dataset contains data on employment by long hour bands (50 and over, 60 and over) for usual weekly hours worked in the main job. Actual hours of work instead of usual hours of work are only available in some countries (Japan and Korea). Data are broken down by professional status - employees, total employment - by sex and age groups. Detailed notes and sources can be found in LFS_NOTES_SOURCES. In order to facilitate analysis and comparisons over time, historical data for OECD members have been provided over as long a period as possible, often even before a country became a member of the Organisation. Information on the membership dates of all OECD countries can be found at OECD Ratification Dates.