Workers in Greece recorded the longest average working week in the European Union in 2025, according to new Eurostat figures, working nearly four hours more per week than the EU average.
The data, which covers both full-time and part-time employees aged between 20 and 64, showed Greek workers averaged 39.6 actual working hours per week, compared with the EU average of 35.9 hours.
The figures were recorded before Greece’s new labour legislation introducing a 13-hour workday came into effect in early 2026. The law provides businesses with greater flexibility but has also raised concerns that employees could face longer working schedules.
At the opposite end of the scale, workers in the Netherlands recorded the shortest average working week in the EU at 31.9 hours, almost eight hours fewer than their Greek counterparts.
Eurostat’s findings also highlighted a broader trend towards shorter working weeks across Europe. Since 2015, the EU average has fallen by one hour. After the Netherlands, the shortest average workweeks were recorded in Denmark and Germany at 33.9 hours, followed by Austria at 34 hours.
Greece topped the rankings ahead of Bulgaria and Poland, where workers averaged 38.7 hours per week, and Lithuania at 38.4 hours.
The data measures actual hours worked during the survey week rather than contracted hours and revealed notable differences between countries, professions and genders.
In Greece, men in full-time employment worked an average of 41.8 hours per week in 2025, among the highest figures in Europe, while women averaged 38.8 hours. Self-employed workers also reported significantly longer working hours than salaried employees.
Across the EU, full-time male employees worked an average of 39.4 hours per week, compared with 37.6 hours for women. Greece was one of only four EU countries where men worked an average of 40 hours or more per week, alongside Poland, Slovenia and Cyprus.
Source: To Vima
