Eurostat – Greeks worked harder in the second quarter

In the second quarter of 2021, workers aged 20-64 in the EU worked 3.0% more hours overall in their main job compared to the first quarter of 2021.

According to data released by Eurostat, increases were recorded in most Member States. The largest increase in the volume of real working hours was observed in Greece (+ 18.0%).

In contrast, workers in six Member States worked fewer hours in their main job in the second quarter of 2021. The decrease ranged from -0.2% (in Luxembourg) to -3.6% (in Belgium).

During this crisis, the labor market has been affected by measures taken by EU Member States to limit the spread of COVID-19. Some of these measures had either a direct or indirect effect on the number of working hours of employees.

At EU level, women’s total real working hours increased slightly more (+ 3.3%) than men’s total real working hours (+ 2.7%).

The higher increase in working hours for women than for men was reflected in most Member States. Some countries, however, stood out with a fairly strong difference between the sexes. In Greece, for example, the actual working hours of women in their main job increased by 23.9%, while the working hours of men increased by 14.5%.