Which group puts in more effort: the French or the Germans?
In contrast to a widespread belief, French workers work fewer hours on average than their German counterparts, according to a study by France's Conseil d'analyse économique and data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
The French workweek is legally capped at 35 hours per week, a standard that is significantly lower than the typical working weeks in Germany, where the average is about 35 to 40 hours but often leans towards the upper end of that range. This difference in statutory work hours contributes to French workers' relatively shorter average working week.
Germany's workweeks, however, are more flexible, with overtime and working hours varying by sector and not being capped as tightly. Additionally, German workers tend to retire later and have more working years compared to the French, which also reduces the total lifetime working hours.
The comparison focuses on the active working population, excluding children, pensioners, and the unemployed. On this metric, French employees typically work fewer hours annually than their German counterparts.
It's worth noting that Germans are more likely to be part of the workforce than the French, due to factors such as a higher birth-rate, which means more children who are not (yet) in the workforce. France, on the other hand, has a relatively high percentage of the population not in the workforce, due to a combination of factors such as a long life expectancy and an early retirement age, which means that around a quarter of the population is retired.
The OECD publishes more nuanced data, looking at work hours divided by the total workforce. Using this metric, French workers work an average of 1,494 hours per year, while Germans work 1,340 hours a year.
Despite these findings, France's prime minister recently criticized the country's citizens for not working enough, and the 2026 Budget in France aims to save €40 billion to address the country's budget deficit. However, this article does not provide new information about the 2026 Budget, public holidays, budget deficit, or retirement age in France.
The statement that French workers work less than German workers is broadly true when considering the working population only. While French workers do not work "as little as we might think," their average working week is relatively shorter compared to countries like Germany, Belgium, Austria, and the Netherlands.
[1] Conseil d'analyse économique. (Year). Working hours in France, Germany, the UK, and the USA. [3] OECD. (Year). Data on working hours in France and Germany.
- In the industry of economics, research conducted by the Conseil d'analyse économique and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) reveals that the average working hours of French workers are significantly lower than those of German workers.
- Communications within the domain of politics indicate that France's Prime Minister has criticized the nation's workforce for not working enough, despite the fact that French workers have fewer average working hours compared to countries like Germany, Belgium, Austria, and the Netherlands.
- Within the sphere of finance and business, education-and-self-development, and general-news media, discussions involving workforce policies in France often focus on the short average working week imposed by law and the differences in work hours compared to countries like Germany.
