The employment effects of working time reductions in Europe
The debate on a shorter working time is back in several EU countries. While the debate increasingly mentions well-being and work-life balance among the reasons to reduce working time, the impact of less hour of work on employment is still poorly understood. In a classical supply and demand scenario, reductions of working time at full salary should reduce employment. However, since the early days of the labour movement, some support the idea that work can be redistributed and hence that a shorter work week could lead to higher employment. An analysis of the reductions of usual working hours that took place in EU Member States since the late Nineties shows that the reduction in hours did not translate into higher employment (while the effects on hourly wages and productivity are positive but insignificant).
GARNERO Andrea;
2022-08-30
European Commission
JRC129985
https://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/handle/JRC129985,
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