The average number of hours worked by employees in the UK has fallen at a rate equivalent to the loss of 310,000 workers, official figures have suggested.
The Office for National Statistics’ analysis of the longer-term trends in the hours worked in the UK showed that weekly hours fell by 1.3, from 33.1 in 1998 to 31.8 in 2022.
There was a sharp fall to 29.0 in 2020 from 32.1 in the previous year, owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, and since then working hours have failed to return to pre-pandemic levels.
The ONS said that although the drop is relatively small, at less than 1% of average weekly hours in 2022, it is significant in terms of its quantitative effect on labour supply.
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It said: “Given total employment in the UK during 2022 was 32.7 million, it is equivalent to approximately 310,000 fewer people in employment. Over the same period, there has been an increase in inactivity of 580,000 people over 50 years of age.”
Increases in women’s hours have failed to offset the drop in working time among men. In 1998 men were working on average 38.6 hours per week, but in 2022 this figure was 35.3 – a reduction of 3.3 hours. Women worked 26.5 hours per week in 1998 and 27.9 in 2022.
Although women continued to work fewer hours than men, their relative contribution to labour supply is increasing in terms of working time and the total share of employment, the ONS said.
Men working full-time accounted for nearly all of the decrease in average hours since 1998.
As people aged over 50 tend to work part time, the ONS cautioned that a growing share of older workers in total employment would contribute to a negative shift in working hours.
Since 2019, the average hours worked by men have fallen in every age category except those aged over 65 years.
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