In 2025 the share of part‑time employment in Germany rose to a new high of 39.9 percent, a 0.4‑point increase over 2024, according to the IAB’s working‑time calculations released on Tuesday. Part‑time workers averaged 18.7 hours per week, only 0.2 hours more than the year before, indicating that the rise in part‑time job share has not compressed working hours overall.
The number of people in part‑time roles-both regular part‑time and mini‑jobs-grew by 1.0 percent in 2025, while full‑time employment fell by 0.6 percent. The uptick mainly reflects stronger hiring in sectors with high part‑time utilisation, such as health care, social services, and education and instruction. In contrast, the manufacturing industry, which relies heavily on full‑time staff, has seen a decline. Mini‑jobs themselves slipped 0.8 percent, yet regular part‑time employment increased by 1.8 percent.
Enzo Weber, head of the IAB’s “Forecasts and Macro‑Economic Analyses” research unit, noted that part‑time work has not yet been a financial loss, but there is still potential for growth, particularly through greater career development for women.
Total working volume fell 0.2 percent to 61.26 billion hours in 2025. The employment figure stayed essentially flat, dropping by only 5 000 persons (0.01 percent) to 45.98 million. Average working time per person declined by 0.2 percent, or 2.2 hours, to 1,332 hours annually. Weber said the “working volume has been stagnant for years – the record‑setting era is over”.
Around 4.68 million workers-about 85 000 more than in 2024-held a side job, meaning that 11.1 percent of all employees performed a secondary activity. Each side job averaged roughly 287 hours, 1.5 hours more than the previous year.
The combined hours worked by all dependent employees, including side jobs, reached 1,298 hours per person in 2025. The number of overtime hours taken by employed workers fell relative to the previous year, with an average of 11.6 paid and 15.6 unpaid overtime hours.
Finally, short‑time work (Kurzarbeit) rose by roughly 5,000 people, bringing the 2025 average to 303,000 participants. The surge is mainly attributed to the industrial crisis, with most short‑time workers coming from the manufacturing sector. The average loss of working time per employee increased slightly to 3.1 hours from 2.9 hours in the previous year.
