The number of employed persons in Germany decreased by 160,000 in the first quarter of 2026, totaling 45.64 million. Concurrently, the Institute for Labour Market and Vocational Education Research (IAB) reported that hourly productivity rose by 0.5 percent compared to the previous year’s quarter.
Specifically, the number of part-time employees increased by 0.9 percent, while the count of full-time employees fell by 1.0 percent, raising the part-time rate to 40.1 percent (an increase of 0.4 percentage points). Enzo Weber, head of the IAB research department on “Prognosis and macroeconomic analyses” noted that “Fewer employed people are working more hours”. This trend reflects that 270,000 full-time jobs were lost, while only 150,000 part-time jobs were gained, adding that “However, part-time work is increasingly managed over extended periods, and mini-jobs continue to decline”.
Labor time has shown varied changes across categories. The collective agreed weekly working time remained minimal at 30.42 hours. For full-time employees, this time remained stable at 38.15 hours, while for part-time employees, it rose by 0.3 hours to 18.88 hours.
Overall, the hours worked per employed person rose by 0.3 percent compared to the first quarter of 2025, reaching 344.2 hours. However, when seasonally and calendar-adjusted, this metric slightly declined by 0.2 percent compared to the previous quarter. The total labor volume was 15.7 billion hours in the first quarter of 2026, showing a minimal drop compared to the same period last year, and a 0.2 percent decrease when seasonally and calendar-adjusted relative to the previous quarter.
Furthermore, sickness leave was lower in the first quarter of 2026, registering at 6.1 percent, down from 6.5 percent the previous year. Preliminary projections also indicate that short-time work decreased by 91,000 people compared to the previous year, settling at 438,000 individuals in the first quarter of 2026.
