Total hours by German working population surpasses previous record

BERLIN, March 5 (Xinhua) -- The total number of hours by Germany's working population increased by 1.4 percent and reached a record level of 61.1 billion hours last year, The Institute for Employment Research (IAB) announced on Tuesday.

The previous record of 1991, The first year of statistics after The reunification of Germany, was surpassed by around 800 million hours.

The average annual working time of The German workforce in 2018 remained almost unchanged at 1,363 hours. In comparison, self-employed and family workers put in significantly more time and worked 1,915 hours on average.

"In 2018, we recorded The highest number of employed people and The highest volume of work since reunification. We really do not run out of work, even though this is often claimed," IAB labor market economist Enzo Weber commented.

In January, The Federal Statistical Office reported that The number of employed people in Germany had increased by 1.3 percent in 2018 and thus reached a historic peak at 44.8 million people employed. The number of people in paid positions in Germany has continuously increased for 13 years.

The increase in The total number of hours by Germany's working population has also been caused by "The trend towards more full-time work and fewer mini-jobs," Weber added. While full-time employees in Germany worked a weekly average of 38 hours, part-time employees worked less than half as long. Enditem