A look at global working hour trends
Your employees are the lifeblood of your business.
So it pays to keep them healthy and content.
After all, happy workers are 13% more productive.
And that productivity boost can have a direct and significant effect on your bottom line.
Of course, you want to get as much out of your employees as possible.
But that doesn’t mean working them too hard.
Burnout is a real problem for many businesses and their staff.
So balancing the hours they spend at work with time away from you is critical.
Thanks to the explosion of smart employee scheduling tools, the data on working hours is more accessible than ever.
In this article, we’ll take a look at averages from across the world and see why lower hours could be beneficial.
How hours worked vary by country
Recent data from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development showed a wide range of working patterns across the countries it has data for.
Colombia recorded the highest average hours worked per year at 2297. That works out at over 6 hours every day of the year, or more than 9 hours a day for a more conservative estimate of 250 working days a year.
At the other end of the scale is Germany, at 1347 hours a year. Despite its lofty position as the third largest economy in the world, Germans work an average of just over 5 hours a day, assuming 250 working days a year.
Does working less make you happy?
You might assume Germany would be among the world’s happiest countries, given how little time its citizens spend at work.
In fact, Germany is only ranked as the 24th happiest country, squarely between two countries with far higher working averages, the United States (1804 hours per year) and Mexico (2226).
However, looking at the working trends of the happiest countries does suggest a correlation. The four happiest countries—Finland (1514), Denmark (1394), Iceland (1459), and Sweden (1440)—all rank in the bottom 10 for hours worked. These are also European countries known for generous employee leave policies and a focus on wellbeing.
The one outlier is Israel, the world’s fifth happiest country, where employees average 1891 hours a year. Meanwhile, the Netherlands in sixth has the third lowest hours per year (1415).
So it would seem that while in most of the happiest countries, people work less than average, simply working less is not enough on its own to guarantee happiness.
Should you track individual employee hours?
Given the dangers of employee burnout, we’d recommend looking at any individuals in your timesheet and payroll data who are working much more than their colleagues. This may be a sign that they are at risk of overworking themselves.
Ensuring that your staff are aware of the time off they can take, as well as your policies for break times, sick leave, parental leave, and other absences will help them to maintain a healthy work-life balance.
Remember that more hours doesn’t necessarily equate to more profit. You’re better off employing people who are going to be happy and productive at work and taking time off can help them to achieve that. After all, you’re paying for the time they’re there, so if you can get the same amount done with fewer hours on the clock, why wouldn’t you?
However you manage your employees, Findmyshift makes it easier to schedule them, track time, produce payroll reports, and much more. Try it today!