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Hours worked in the euro area

Author

Listed:
  • Botelho, Vasco
  • Consolo, Agostino
  • Da Silva, António Dias

Abstract

This article analyses the evolution of hours worked per worker in the euro area, in the light of their relevance for the labour contribution to the production of goods and services and for the capacity of the labour market to adjust to macroeconomic developments. Annual hours worked per worker in the euro area have been on a downward trend. Between 1995 and 2019, they declined by more than a hundred hours per worker, from 1,681 to 1,476. Most of this decline results from a rising share of part-time work which in turn can mainly be explained by the increasing labour force participation of women. Labour supply factors have a clear impact as most people working part-time do so voluntarily. Hours worked per worker also play an important role in the adjustment of the labour market during cyclical downturns, as some firms choose to reduce hours per worker to protect employment. This feature is an important factor in assessing the strength of the labour market during subsequent recoveries. JEL Classification: E24, E32, J22

Suggested Citation

  • Botelho, Vasco & Consolo, Agostino & Da Silva, António Dias, 2021. "Hours worked in the euro area," Economic Bulletin Articles, European Central Bank, vol. 6.
    • Handle: RePEc:ecb:ecbart:2021:0006:1
    Note: 3572376
    as

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    File URL: https://www.ecb.europa.eu//pub/economic-bulletin/articles/2021/html/ecb.ebart202106_01~9c1a646a58.en.html
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Stefan Angel & Stefan Ederer & Ulrike Huemer & Helmut Mahringer, 2023. "Entwicklung von Arbeitszeit und Beschäftigung in Österreich," Working Paper Reihe der AK Wien - Materialien zu Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft 246, Kammer für Arbeiter und Angestellte für Wien, Abteilung Wirtschaftswissenschaft und Statistik.
    2. Di Bartolomeo, Giovanni & D'Imperio, Paolo & Felici, Francesco, 2022. "The fiscal response to the Italian COVID-19 crisis: A counterfactual analysis," Journal of Macroeconomics, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    3. Stefan Angel & Stefan Ederer & Ulrike Huemer & Helmut Mahringer, 2023. "Entwicklung von Arbeitszeit und Beschäftigung in Österreich," WIFO Studies, WIFO, number 71152, April.
    4. Gomez-Salvador, Ramon & Soudan, Michel, 2022. "The US labour market after the COVID-19 recession," Occasional Paper Series 298, European Central Bank.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    female participation; Hours worked per worker; part-time work;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E24 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution; Aggregate Human Capital; Aggregate Labor Productivity
    • E32 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles - - - Business Fluctuations; Cycles
    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply

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