Zitatform

Cabrita, Jorge, Catherine Cerf & David Foden (2022): Overtime in Europe: Regulation and practice. (Eurofound research report / European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions), Dublin, 48 S. DOI:10.2806/095550

Abstract

"Despite the well-known adverse effects of regular long working hours on workers’ health, well-being and performance, many workers in the EU continue to work beyond their normal hours. Part of this additional working time is classified as overtime. This report takes a comparative overview of how overtime is regulated in the EU Member States, Norway and the United Kingdom, including its definition, the limits on its use and the compensation received by workers for working extra hours. The report assesses the extent of the phenomenon using national-level data, delves into the factors that explain it, and examines the potential consequences for workers and firms. Finally, the report summarises the current debate on the topic, as uncompensated working hours, structural overtime and monitoring of working hours are currently some of the most discussed work-related issues across the EU." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Gimenez-Nadal, J. Ignacio & José Alberto Molina (2020): The Gender Gap in Time Allocation in Europe. (IZA discussion paper 13461), 42 S.

Abstract

"This article explores the gender gap in time allocation in Europe, offering up-to-date statistics and information on several factors that may help to explain these differences. Prior research has identified several factors affecting the time individuals devote to paid work, unpaid work, and child care, and the gender gaps in these activities, but most research refers to single countries, and general patterns are rarely explored. Cross-country evidence on gender gaps in paid work, unpaid work, and child care is offered, and explanations based on education, earnings, and household structure are presented, using data from the EUROSTAT and the Multinational Time Use Surveys. There are large cross-country differences in the gender gaps in paid work, unpaid work, and child care, which remain after controlling for socio-demographic characteristics, although the gender gap in paid work dissipates when the differential gendered relationship between socio-demographic characteristics and paid work is taken into account. This paper provides a comprehensive analysis of gender gaps in Europe, helping to focus recent debates on how to tackle inequality in Europe, and clarifying the factors that contribute to gender inequalities in the uses of time." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Aumann, Annemarie & Melanie Hack (2016): Wahlarbeitszeit und Arbeitszeitflexibilisierung. Modelle einer selbstbestimmten Erwerbsbiografie in Deutschland und Norwegen. In: Zeitschrift für europäisches Sozial- und Arbeitsrecht, Jg. 15, H. 7, S. 266-276.

Abstract

"Der folgende Beitrag nimmt kritisch rechtliche Modelle flexibler Arbeitszeitgestaltung in Deutschland und Norwegen sowie den Entwurf des Deutschen Juristinnenbundes zur Schaffung eines Wahlarbeitszeitgesetzes in den Blick." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

Zitatform

Bick, Alexander, Bettina Brüggemann & Nicola Fuchs-Schündeln (2016): Hours worked in Europe and the US. New data, new answers. (IZA discussion paper 10179), Bonn, 44 S.

Abstract

"We use national labor force surveys from 1983 through 2011 to construct hours worked per person on the aggregate level and for different demographic groups for 18 European countries and the US. We find that Europeans work 19% fewer hours than US citizens. Differences in weeks worked and in the educational composition each account for one third to one half of this gap. Lower hours per person than in the US are in addition driven by lower weekly hours worked in Scandinavia and Western Europe, but by lower employment rates in Eastern and Southern Europe." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Dulk, Laura den, Hana Hašková, Renata Kyzlinková, Sevil Sümer, Dominique Anxo, Dorota Szelewa & Laura den Dulk (2016): Working time options over the life course. New regulations and empirical findings in five European countries. (WSI study 07), Düsseldorf, 136 S.

Abstract

"Sie stellt den aktuellen Stand der Regulierung von Arbeitszeitoptionen für eine lebensphasenorientierte Arbeitszeitgestaltung in fünf europäischen Ländern vor: Wissenschaftler/innen aus den Niederlanden, Schweden, Norwegen, Polen und der Tschechischen Republik gehen auf das Angebot an flexiblen Arbeitszeitarrangements per Gesetz und per Tarifvertrag ein und zeigen Zusammenhänge zur Geschlechtergleichstellung auf.
Zu finden sind die neuesten Daten zur Verfügbarkeit von Teilzeit, Elternzeit, Vaterschaftsurlaub und anderer Auszeiten. Die Wissenschaftler/innen stellen Forschungsergebnisse zur Nutzung der Optionen in den jeweiligen Ländern vor und behandeln die Veränderungen der letzten Jahre.
So gibt es in Ländern, in denen bisher feste Arbeitszeiten vorherrschten (Polen und Tschechische Republik) eine gewisse Zunahme von Arbeitszeitoptionen. Auch in diesen Ländern wird ein zunehmender Druck deutlich, das alte Arbeitszeitregime zu flexibilisieren.
In allen Ländern (Ausnahme: Schweden) zeigen sich Bestrebungen, flexible Arbeitszeiten (noch stärker) für wirtschaftliche Ziele nutzbar zu machen, das heißt, arbeitgeber- oder betriebsbezogene Flexibilität auszuweiten.
Die wenigen Studien, die zur Praxis der Nutzung von Arbeitszeitoptionen vorliegen, deuten darauf hin, dass in vielen Fällen die Einführung der Optionen nicht von einer Veränderung der betrieblichen Kultur begleitet war." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

Zitatform

Pollmann-Schult, Matthias (2016): What mothers want: The impact of structural and cultural factors on mothers' preferred working hours in Western Europe. In: Advances in life course research, Jg. 29, H. September, S. 16-25. DOI:10.1016/j.alcr.2015.11.002

Abstract

"This study investigates how social policies, gender norms, and the national working time regime shape mothers' preferred working hours. Using data from the European Social Survey (ESS) for 15 countries across Western Europe, the study reveals that generous public child care and cultural support for gender equality are associated with smaller gaps in the preferred working hours between mothers and childless women. High levels of financial support for families, in contrast, predict larger gaps in preferred working hours. The analysis also indicates that a low prevalence of non-standard work and high levels of work-time flexibility reduce the differences in preferred employment hours between mothers and non-mothers. Individual characteristics such as education, gender ideology, and the partners' socioeconomic status greatly impact women's preferred employment hours; however, they do not modify the effect of motherhood. This study concludes that the impact of parenthood on women's employment hours is highly contingent upon various institutional and cultural factors." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

Zitatform

Landivar, Liana Christin (2015): The gender gap in employment hours. Do work-hour regulations matter? In: Work, employment and society, Jg. 29, H. 4, S. 550-570. DOI:10.1177/0950017014568139

Abstract

"In all developed countries, women, especially mothers, work fewer paid hours than their spouses. However, the magnitude of the gender gap varies significantly by country, ranging from 2 to 20 hours per week in this study. Using data from the 2002 International Social Survey Programme, this article investigates whether work-hour regulations have a significant effect on household allocation of paid labour and gender work-hour inequality. Two main types of work-hour regulations are examined: standard weekly work hours and the maximum allowable weekly work hours. Results show that households in countries with shorter maximum weekly work hours had less work-hour inequality between spouses, as each additional allowable overtime hour over the standard working week increased the work-hour gap between couples by 20 minutes. These results indicate that couples' inequality in work hours and gender inequality in labour supply are associated with country-level work-hour regulations." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Nicolaisen, Heidi (2014): The end of the normal working day. A study of change in Irish, Norwegian and Swedish banking. In: Economic and Industrial Democracy, Jg. 35, H. 2, S. 245-266. DOI:10.1177/0143831X12475243

Abstract

"Since 1980 debates about the regulation of working time have been characterized by demands for flexibility and deregulation. This article looks at how the regulation of the normal working day has changed during the last 30 years and examines how these regulative changes interplay with new work practices. Based on theories on institutional change the article compares the development in working time regulations in the banking sector in three countries, Norway, Ireland and Sweden. Although the majority of the regulations remain intact, they have become considerably more flexible in all three countries. The normal working day is most weakened in Ireland, but it is also undermined in the two Nordic countries. New rules, practices and ideas result in more unsocial hours working, which increasingly remain uncompensated. These similarities across the countries are uncovered because of a research design that allows for examination of institutional change at a detailed level over a long period of time." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Ruppanner, Leah (2013): Conflict between work and family: An investigation of four policy measures. In: Social indicators research, Jg. 110, H. 1, S. 327-347. DOI:10.1007/s11205-011-9929-z

Abstract

"Welfare states enact a range of policies aimed at reducing work-family conflict. While welfare state policies have been assessed at the macro-level and work-family conflict at the individual-level, few studies have simultaneously addressed these relationships in a cross-national multi-level model. This study addresses this void by assessing the relationship between work-family and family-work conflict and family-friendly policies in 10 countries. Applying a unique multi-level data set that couples country-level policy data with individual-level data (N=7,895) from the 2002 International Social Survey Programme, the author analyzes the relationship between work-family and family-work conflict and four specific policy measures: family leave, work scheduling, school scheduling, and early childhood education and care. The results demonstrate that mothers and fathers report less family-work and mothers less work-family conflict in countries with more expansive family leave policies. Also, in countries with longer school schedules mothers report less and women without children more work-family conflict." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Kjeldstad, Randi & Erik H. Nymoen (2012): Underemployment in a gender-segregated labour market. In: Economic and Industrial Democracy, Jg. 33, H. 2, S. 207-224. DOI:10.1177/0143831X11402238

Abstract

"This article analyses factors behind underemployment in Norway, with a focus on gender. The analysis, based on Labour Force Survey data, shows that economic fluctuations during the latest decade and a half have brought about changing underemployment levels among both women and men. The Norwegian labour market is strongly gender segregated and the processes and characteristics of underemployment differ between male- and female-dominated labour market sectors. The former sectors are generally more sensitive to economic fluctuations than the latter. It is indicated that underemployed men are predominantly temporarily expelled on a part-time basis from their jobs, while women are to a larger extent permanently excluded from longer working-hour contracts in their jobs." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Lappegård, Trude (2012): Couples' parental leave practices: The role of the workplace situation. In: Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Jg. 33, H. 3, S. 298-305. DOI:10.1007/s10834-012-9291-6

Abstract

"We address the issue of the relationship between couples' parental leave practices and their workplace situation in a Nordic family policy setting described as both generous and gender egalitarian. The most common practice is that the father makes use of a mandatory fathers' quota and the mother uses the rest of the total of 12 months of paid leave. There is little limitations in parents' workplaces for fathers use of the father's quota. Parental leave practices involving couples where the father is taking longer leave than the father's quota and thereby the mother taking shorter leave compared with those taking maximum, are associated both with mothers' workplaces and fathers' workplaces." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Lyness, Karen S., Janet C. Gornick, Pamela Stone & Angela R. Grotto (2012): It's all about control: worker control over schedule and hours in cross-national context. In: American Sociological Review, Jg. 77, H. 6, S. 1023-1049. DOI:10.1177/0003122412465331

Abstract

"Workers' ability to control their work schedules and hours varies significantly among industrialized countries. We integrate and extend prior research from a variety of literatures to examine antecedents of control and worker outcomes. Using hierarchical linear modeling and data for 21 countries from the 1997 ISSP Work Orientations Survey supplemented with national indicators developed from a variety of sources, we find that control is associated with country characteristics (affluence, welfare state generosity, union coverage, and working-time regulations), worker attributes (being male, being older, and being better educated), and job characteristics (working part-time, being self-employed, having higher earnings, and having more advancement opportunities). We also examine the relationship of control to job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and strain-based work-family conflict. Generally, low levels of control are linked to negative outcomes for workers, especially for women, an effect sometimes modulated by country-level policy measures." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Ohanian, Lee E. & Andrea Raffo (2012): Aggregate hours worked in OECD countries. New measurement and implications for business cycles. In: Journal of monetary economics, Jg. 59, H. 1, S. 40-56. DOI:10.1016/j.jmoneco.2011.11.005

Abstract

"We build a dataset of quarterly hours worked for 14 OECD countries. We document that hours are as volatile as output, that a large fraction of labor adjustment takes place along the intensive margin, and that the volatility of hours relative to output has increased over time. We use these data to reassess the Great Recession and prior recessions. The Great Recession in many countries is a puzzle in that labor wedges are small, while those in the U.S. Great Recession - and those in previous European recessions - are much larger." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Reich, Nora, Christina Boll & Julian Sebastian Leppin (2012): Fathers' childcare and parental leave policies. Evidence from western European countries and Canada. (HWWI research paper 115), Hamburg, 21 S.

Abstract

"The study at hand pursues the following question: How are national parental leave arrangements related to fathers' participation in and time used for childcare? To answer this question, we merge data from the Multinational Time Use Study (MTUS) with national parental leave characteristics. Specifically, we are using 30 surveys from eight industrialised countries from 1971 to 2005. Applying a selection model, we are estimating fathers' participation in childcare and the minutes per day spent on childcare. We control for the following parental leave characteristics: duration of leave, amount of benefits and the number of weeks reserved for the father. The main results are that duration of parental leave, exclusive weeks for the father and any benefit compared to no benefit have a positive impact on fathers' childcare participation. Parental leave weeks reserved for the father and parental leave benefits affect fathers' minutes of childcare positively. It is concluded that parental leave characteristics have effects on fathers' childcare participation and time spent on childcare, but that parental leave policies have to be evaluated within the framework of each country's family policy package." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Ruppanner, Leah & Joy E. Pixley (2012): Work-to-family and family-to-work spillover: the implications of childcare policy and maximum work-hour legislation. In: Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Jg. 33, H. 3, S. 283-297. DOI:10.1007/s10834-012-9303-6

Abstract

"This paper addresses the relationship between individual-level work-to-family and family-to-work spillover and two country-level policy measures: childcare policy and maximum work hour legislation. Coupling Gornick and Meyers' (Families that work: policies for reconciling parenthood and employment, 2003) policy measures with individual-level data (N=7,895) from the 2002 International Social Survey Programme, the authors analyze whether men and women in countries with stronger childcare policies and maximum work-hour legislation exhibit work-to-family and family-to-work spillover. The authors find that neither childcare policy nor maximum work-hour legislation is significantly associated with work-to-family spillover. Stronger childcare policy is associated with lower family-to-work spillover for women, especially for women with young children. Maximum-hour legislation is associated with greater family-to-work spillover for women, with a significantly larger effect for mothers of young children." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Olsen, Karen M. & Svenn-Åge Dahl (2010): Working time: implications for sickness absence and the work-family balance. In: International journal of social welfare, Jg. 19, H. 1, S. 45-53. DOI:10.1111/j.1468-2397.2008.00619.x

Abstract

"The article analyses the impact of working time on two outcomes: sickness absence and the work-family balance. Working time is distinguished along two dimensions: irregular versus regular working hours and control versus no control over working time. There are three main findings. First, working irregular working hours with no control over time increased sickness absence, for men. Second, irregular hours, particularly with no flexibility, caused distress to the work-family balance, for both women and men. Third, flexibility in the work schedule when working regular hours had no effect on sickness absence nor on the work-family balance. This last finding may be explained by the institutional setting: employees in Norway already have substantial flexibility in, for instance, access to leave of absence. The findings suggest that increasing flexibility may benefit employees who work irregular hours." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Fleck, Susan E. (2009): International comparisons of hours worked: an assessment of the statistics. In: Monthly labor review, Jg. 132, H. 5, S. 3-31.

Abstract

"A study of 13 countries reveals that measures of hours worked based on administrative sources are relatively low while measures based on establishment and labor force surveys are relatively high; thus, although ever improving, these measures cannot yet be taken at face value and are useful only for broad comparisons." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Carley, Mark (2008): Working time developments 2008. Dublin, 35 S.

Abstract

"In 2008, average collectively agreed weekly working time in the European Union stood at 38.6 hours; agreed normal annual working time averaged about 1,740 hours. Of the three economic sectors examined in this study, agreed weekly working hours are highest in metalworking (38.7), followed by the banking and local government sectors (both 38.3). Average collectively agreed paid annual leave entitlement was 25.2 days across the EU in 2008, although the total varied significantly between the 'old' and the new Member States. This report also examines statutory working time and leave limits, and actual working hours. This annual update looks at a number of aspects of the duration of working time in the European Union and Norway in 2008, based on contributions from the European Industrial Relations Observatory (EIRO) national centres. The study examines the following issues: average weekly working hours as set by collective agreements - both at national level and for three specific economic sectors; statutory limits on weekly and daily working time; average actual weekly working hours; annual leave entitlement, as set by collective agreements and law; and estimates of average collectively agreed annual working time. The report provides a general overview of the current situation and developments regarding working time, but the figures provided should be read with caution, and the various notes and explanations borne in mind. This reflects the fact that there are a number of problems in international comparisons of the length of working time. Comparable data are not collected in all countries, while particular difficulties include the following: the existence of different ways of calculating working time, with annual, rather than weekly calculation increasingly common in some countries (TN0308101S); the fact that working time reductions in some countries have been introduced through extra days off or cuts in annual working hours, leaving the normal working week relatively unchanged; the increasing use of schemes whereby weekly working hours may vary considerably, with an average being maintained over a reference period; the treatment of part-time workers; the differing roles of collective bargaining and legislation, with the latter having an impact on actual hours in some countries, but acting only as a maximum 'safety net' in others." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Presser, Harriet B., Janet C. Gornick & Sangeeta Parashar (2008): Gender and nonstandard work hours in 12 European countries. In: Monthly labor review, Jg. 131, H. 2, S. 83-103.

Abstract

"Labor force surveys conducted in several European countries in 2005 indicate high levels of nonstandard work hours, varying by gender; by contrast, nonstandard work hours for both men and women vary little by whether they have or do not have children." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Abstract

"This annual update provides an overview of the duration of working time in the European Union and Norway in 2007, based on contributions from the European Industrial Relations Observatory (EIRO) national centres. The study considers the following issues: average weekly working hours as set by collective agreements - both at national level and for three specific economic sectors; statutory limits on weekly and daily working time; average actual weekly working hours; annual leave entitlement, as set by collective agreements and law; and estimates of average collectively agreed annual working time.
In 2007, average collectively agreed weekly working time in the European Union was 38.6 hours, while agreed normal annual working time averaged about 1,740 hours. Of the three economic sectors examined in this study, agreed weekly working hours are highest in retail (38.8), followed by the chemicals industry (38.6) and the civil service (38.3). Average collectively agreed paid annual leave entitlement stood at 25.2 days across the EU in 2007, although the total varied significantly between the 'old' and new Member States. This report also examines statutory working time and leave limits, and actual working hours." (Text excerpt, IAB-Doku) ((en))