Nuremberg. The volume of work rose to 14.7 billion hours in the second quarter of 2024 – an increase of 0.8 percent compared to the same quarter last year. This means that it has exceeded the pre-coronavirus level for the first time. This is the result of the working time calculations published on Tuesday by the Institute for Employment Research (IAB). “In Germany, people have never worked so much – in the middle of the economic downturn,” reports Enzo Weber, head of the IAB research department “Forecasts and Macroeconomic Analyses”.
The volume of work is thus slightly above the pre-Corona level of the second quarter of 2019 of 14.6 billion hours. Seasonally and calendar-adjusted, there is an increase of 0.3 percent compared to the previous quarter. “But a further increase is not a given,” adds Weber. “Employment growth is leveling off significantly, the part-time rate is climbing to almost 40 percent and fewer overtime hours are being worked than ever before.”
The number of employed persons rose by 0.4 percent in the second quarter of 2024 compared to the same quarter of the previous year, reaching 46.1 million people. Working hours per employed person showed a slight increase of 0.4 percent compared to the same quarter of the previous year – it averaged 318.2 hours in the second quarter of 2024. Hourly productivity fell by 0.4 percent compared to the same quarter of the previous year. (eb)
