Read this article in:
5 September, 1999New ILO statistical volume highlights labour trends worldwide.
GENEVA: U.S. workers put in the longest hours on the job in industrialised nations, each nearly 2,000 hours in 1997, the equivalent of almost two working weeks more than their counterparts in Japan, according to a new statistical study of global labour trends published by the International Labour Organisation (ILO).
The study examines 18 "Key Indicators of the Labour Market (KILM)", including labour productivity, labour costs, unemployment and hours worked.
The long working hours of U.S. and Japanese workers (respectively 1,966 and 1,889 hours in 1997) contrast most sharply with those of European workers, who are logging progressively fewer hours on the job, particularly in Scandinavian countries such as Norway and Sweden, where hours worked in 1997 were respectively 1,399 and 1,522 per year.
In France, which recently introduced legislation limiting the workweek to 35 hours, men and women put in 1,656 hours in 1997. In Germany the total annual working hours was just under 1,560 in 1996, in the United Kingdom 1,731 hours in 1997, in Switzerland 1,643 hours.
The rapidly industrialising countries in East Asia are reporting between 2,200-1,300 working hours per year. Workers in Latin American and Caribbean countries work between 1,800-1,000 hours per year.
Commenting on the findings, ILO Director-General Juan Somavia said: "The number of hours worked is one important indicator of a country's overall quality of life." He added that "while the benefits of hard work are clear, working more is not the same as working better."
The study examines 18 "Key Indicators of the Labour Market (KILM)", including labour productivity, labour costs, unemployment and hours worked.
The long working hours of U.S. and Japanese workers (respectively 1,966 and 1,889 hours in 1997) contrast most sharply with those of European workers, who are logging progressively fewer hours on the job, particularly in Scandinavian countries such as Norway and Sweden, where hours worked in 1997 were respectively 1,399 and 1,522 per year.
In France, which recently introduced legislation limiting the workweek to 35 hours, men and women put in 1,656 hours in 1997. In Germany the total annual working hours was just under 1,560 in 1996, in the United Kingdom 1,731 hours in 1997, in Switzerland 1,643 hours.
The rapidly industrialising countries in East Asia are reporting between 2,200-1,300 working hours per year. Workers in Latin American and Caribbean countries work between 1,800-1,000 hours per year.
Commenting on the findings, ILO Director-General Juan Somavia said: "The number of hours worked is one important indicator of a country's overall quality of life." He added that "while the benefits of hard work are clear, working more is not the same as working better."