Wiesbaden – September 08, 2026 -- A net 0.6 hours per worker could be shaved off Germany's average working week if all employee time-preferences were realized, according to first results from the 2025 Mikrozensus survey released by the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis).
3.8 million employed people aged 15 to 74 in Germany wanted to work shorter hours in 2025, while 1.5 million wanted to work more, Destatis reported. Workers seeking reduced hours logged an average 40.9-hour week and wished to cut it by 10.5 hours. Those wanting more work averaged 26.2 hours weekly and sought an equivalent 10.5-hour increase.
Average working week stood at 34.7 hours across all employed persons
The gewöhnlich geleistete (usual) weekly working time across all employed persons in the 15-74 age bracket, combining main and secondary jobs, averaged 34.7 hours in 2025. Applying all stated preferences would theoretically pull that figure down by 0.6 hours, or 36 minutes, per worker. Respondents were instructed to factor in that additional hours would come with higher pay and reduced hours with lower pay.
Full-time and part-time status splits the preference pool
Of the 3.8 million wanting to cut hours, 3.3 million worked full-time and 0.5 million part-time. Among the 1.5 million wanting more hours, the pattern reversed: 1.1 million were part-time employees and only 0.4 million full-time.
Full-time men average 41.1 hours, 1.5 hours more than full-time women
Full-time men worked an average 41.1 hours per week versus 39.6 hours for full-time women. Men more frequently wanted to increase their hours (1.8% versus 1.1% of women) and less frequently wanted to reduce them (10.3% versus 13.5% of women).
Among part-time workers, women logged a longer usual week than men, 22.1 hours versus 19.9 hours. Yet part-time women were less likely to want more hours, at 7.4%, compared with 10.4% of part-time men.
Destatis noted that survey mode affects results: since 2020, the Mikrozensus has used a multi-mode design allowing online responses (CAWI), and notable differences emerged between CAWI and non-CAWI answers across all age groups and both sexes.