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Hours Worked in Europe and the United States: New Data, New Answers

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  • Alexander Bick
  • Bettina Brüggemann
  • Nicola Fuchs‐Schündeln
Abstract
We use national labor force surveys from 1983 to 2015 to construct hours worked per person on the aggregate level and for different demographic groups for 18 European countries and the United States. We apply a harmonization procedure to measure hours worked consistently across countries and over time. In the recent cross‐section, Europeans work 14 percent fewer hours than US Americans. Differences in weeks worked and in the educational composition each account for one quarter to one half of this gap. In addition, lower hours worked per person than in the United States are driven by lower weekly hours worked in Scandinavia and Western Europe, but by lower employment rates in Eastern and Southern Europe.

Suggested Citation

  • Alexander Bick & Bettina Brüggemann & Nicola Fuchs‐Schündeln, 2019. "Hours Worked in Europe and the United States: New Data, New Answers," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 121(4), pages 1381-1416, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:scandj:v:121:y:2019:i:4:p:1381-1416
    DOI: 10.1111/sjoe.12344
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    3. Ahmad, Khalil & Shahid, Muhammad & Bhatti, Muhammad Kashif & Ali, Amjad, 2024. "Global Perspectives on Fiscal Policy and Labor Income-Leisure Choices: Theoretical and Practical Insights," MPRA Paper 121283, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    4. Slacalek, Jiri & Tristani, Oreste & Violante, Giovanni L., 2020. "Household balance sheet channels of monetary policy: A back of the envelope calculation for the euro area," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 115(C).
    5. Titan Alon & Sena Coskun & Matthias Doepke & David Koll & Michèle Tertilt, 2022. "From Mancession to Shecession: Women’s Employment in Regular and Pandemic Recessions," NBER Macroeconomics Annual, University of Chicago Press, vol. 36(1), pages 83-151.
    6. Can, Ege & Fossen, Frank M., 2023. "Income Taxation and Hours Worked in Different Types of Entrepreneurship," IZA Discussion Papers 16683, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    7. Ek, Andreas, 2021. "Cross-country differences in preferences for leisure," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 72(C).
    8. Markus Nagler & Johannes Rincke & Erwin Winkler, 2024. "Working from home, commuting, and gender," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 37(3), pages 1-23, September.
    9. Claus Thustrup Kreiner & Michael Svarer, 2022. "Danish Flexicurity: Rights and Duties," CEBI working paper series 22-16, University of Copenhagen. Department of Economics. The Center for Economic Behavior and Inequality (CEBI).
    10. Ana I. Moro Egido & Joaquin Naval & Jose I. Silva, 2023. "Part-time hours and wages," ThE Papers 23/06, Department of Economic Theory and Economic History of the University of Granada..
    11. Tanguy Le Fur & Alain Trannoy, 2024. "The health-maximizing level of labor supply: a macroeconomic perspective on the American Health Puzzle," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 37(4), pages 1-32, December.
    12. Behringer, Jan & Gonzalez Granda, Martin & van Treeck, Till, 2022. "Varieties of the rat race: Working hours in the age of abundance," ifso working paper series 17, University of Duisburg-Essen, Institute for Socioeconomics (ifso).
    13. Tanguy Le Fur & Alain Trannoy, 2024. "The Health-Maximizing Level of Labor Supply: A Macroeconomic Perspective on the American Health Puzzle," AMSE Working Papers 2419, Aix-Marseille School of Economics, France.

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