Long usual weekly working hours — Employment in United Kingdom
United Kingdom: Long usual weekly working hours — Employment was 3,387 Persons in 2025. ▼ Falling
Long usual weekly working hours — Employment in United Kingdom, 1983–2025
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Persons.
Analysis
United Kingdom recorded 3,387 Persons for long usual weekly working hours — employment in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.7% on the previous year and down 23.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, long usual weekly working hours — employment in United Kingdom peaked at 5,082 Persons in 1997 and was at its lowest, 3,340 Persons, in 1983.
That places United Kingdom 8th out of 40 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 43 years of available data.
Long usual weekly working hours — Employment in United Kingdom, year by year
| Year | Persons | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1983 | 3,340 Persons | — |
| 1984 | 3,464 Persons | +3.7% |
| 1985 | 3,799 Persons | +9.7% |
| 1986 | 4,038 Persons | +6.3% |
| 1987 | 4,255 Persons | +5.4% |
| 1988 | 4,652 Persons | +9.3% |
| 1989 | 4,874 Persons | +4.8% |
| 1990 | 4,883 Persons | +0.2% |
| 1991 | 4,620 Persons | -5.4% |
| 1992 | 4,459 Persons | -3.5% |
| 1993 | 4,465 Persons | +0.1% |
| 1994 | 4,699 Persons | +5.2% |
| 1995 | 4,897 Persons | +4.2% |
| 1996 | 4,966 Persons | +1.4% |
| 1997 | 5,082 Persons | +2.3% |
| 1998 | 5,077 Persons | -0.1% |
| 1999 | 4,821 Persons | -5.1% |
| 2000 | 4,651 Persons | -3.5% |
| 2001 | 4,715 Persons | +1.4% |
| 2002 | 4,528 Persons | -4.0% |
| 2003 | 4,446 Persons | -1.8% |
| 2004 | 4,348 Persons | -2.2% |
| 2005 | 4,230 Persons | -2.7% |
| 2006 | 4,142 Persons | -2.1% |
| 2007 | 4,169 Persons | +0.7% |
| 2008 | 4,152 Persons | -0.4% |
| 2009 | 3,928 Persons | -5.4% |
| 2010 | 3,902 Persons | -0.7% |
| 2011 | 3,979 Persons | +2.0% |
| 2012 | 4,047 Persons | +1.7% |
| 2013 | 4,170 Persons | +3.0% |
| 2014 | 4,379 Persons | +5.0% |
| 2015 | 4,425 Persons | +1.1% |
| 2016 | 4,478 Persons | +1.2% |
| 2017 | 4,393 Persons | -1.9% |
| 2018 | 4,307 Persons | -2.0% |
| 2019 | 4,303 Persons | -0.1% |
| 2020 | 3,842 Persons | -10.7% |
| 2021 | 3,709 Persons | -3.5% |
| 2022 | 3,670 Persons | -1.1% |
| 2023 | 3,428 Persons | -6.6% |
| 2024 | 3,410 Persons | -0.5% |
| 2025 | 3,387 Persons | -0.7% |
United Kingdom compared with similar countries
- United Kingdom's 3,387 Persons is above the median for high income countries, which is 341.58 Persons, 9.9× the median. (31 countries reporting)
- United Kingdom's 3,387 Persons is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 254.16 Persons, 13.3× the median. (24 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 4,060 Persons | 3,340 Persons | 4,874 Persons | 7 |
| 1990s | 4,797 Persons | 4,459 Persons | 5,082 Persons | 10 |
| 2000s | 4,331 Persons | 3,928 Persons | 4,715 Persons | 10 |
| 2010s | 4,238 Persons | 3,902 Persons | 4,478 Persons | 10 |
| 2020s | 3,574 Persons | 3,387 Persons | 3,842 Persons | 6 |
Countries ranked near United Kingdom
- 5 Türkiye 8,535 Persons compare
- 5 Brazil 10,154 Persons compare
- 5 Croatia 47.4 Persons compare
- 6 Japan 9,090 Persons compare
- 6 Poland 1,137 Persons compare
- 7 Colombia 4,894 Persons compare
- 7 Netherlands 483.51 Persons compare
- 8 Slovenia 45.16 Persons compare
- 9 Lithuania 14.43 Persons compare
- 9 South Africa 3,005 Persons compare
- 10 Estonia 13.51 Persons compare
- 10 France 2,732 Persons compare
- 11 Latvia 7.7 Persons compare
- 11 Argentina 2,257 Persons compare
More work & labour data for United Kingdom
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 22,956 (2027)
- Labour force participation rate (ILO modelled estimates) 60.91 (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 35,770 (2027)
- Unemployment rate (ILO modelled estimates) 4.93 (2027)
- Labour dependency ratio 1.07 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2021 international $ at PPP 111,361 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2015 US $ 100,223 (2027)
- Employment-to-population ratio (ILO modelled estimates) 57.91 (2027)
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+) 1.47 % change on previous year (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+), annual growth rate 0.4352 % change on previous year (2027)
Frequently asked questions
- What is long usual weekly working hours — employment in United Kingdom?
- Long usual weekly working hours — employment in United Kingdom was 3,387 Persons in 2025, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
- What is the highest long usual weekly working hours — employment recorded in United Kingdom?
- The highest recorded value was 5,082 Persons in 1997.
- What is the lowest long usual weekly working hours — employment recorded in United Kingdom?
- The lowest recorded value was 3,340 Persons in 1983.
- How does United Kingdom rank for long usual weekly working hours — employment?
- United Kingdom ranks 8th out of 40 countries with data for 2025.
- Is long usual weekly working hours — employment rising or falling in United Kingdom?
- Over the last ten years it is down 23.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this United Kingdom data come from?
- The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Long usual weekly working hours — Employment. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
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.