Part-Time Work in Austria Has Increased Significantly
At the same time, the number of those working full-time increased from 2.61 to 2.69 million, as shown by a survey published by Statistik Austria on Wednesday. The Microcensus Labour Force Survey also shows that the number of hours worked per week has decreased from 32 to 30 since 2013.
Part-time in Austria: High Proportion of Women
In 2013, men who worked part-time averaged 16.2 hours, in 2023 it was 17.3. Women working part-time, on the other hand, averaged 18.2 hours per week in 2013 and ten years later 18.7. Full-time employees, however, worked 37.2 hours in 2013 and only 35.1 in 2023. This means that while the average number of hours for full-time work decreased, it slightly increased for part-time work.
"More and more people in Austria are working part-time, on fixed-term contracts, marginally or in temporary work. In 2013, less than a third of the dependent employees were in such employment relationships, in 2023 it was 36.7 percent," explained Tobias Thomas, Director General of Statistik Austria. The part-time rate increased during this period from 26.7 to 31.6 percent. "Only the Netherlands has a higher part-time rate in the EU," said Thomas.
Fixed-term Contracts and Temporary Work Also Increased
The number of fixed-term contracts has also increased significantly, by 20 percent. In 2023, 243,000 people were in fixed-term service contracts, compared to 203,000 in 2013. Temporary work saw an increase of 14.5 percent to 85,000, marginal employment increased by 9.9 percent to 191,000. The number of freelance contracts decreased by 20.5 percent to 30,000 compared to 2013.
While standard employment relationships were still the norm for men in dependent employment in 2023, this was not the case for women. More than half of the women in dependent employment were in atypical employment relationships, most often part-time. The biggest differences between women and men are in part-time work. Every second woman in dependent employment worked part-time in 2023. With 51.6 percent, Austria's part-time rate for women is one of the highest in Europe, the EU average is only 29.3 percent. The rate for men, on the other hand, is only slightly above the European average.
Women with Children Often Work Part-Time
According to Statistics Austria, the unequal distribution of paid and unpaid work between the sexes in Austria is reflected in the high part-time rate of women. In the microcensus labour force survey, the most common reason for part-time work among women in dependent employment was care responsibilities for children or dependent adults (39.8 percent), which played a minor role for men (8.6 percent).
Family obligations therefore not only influence women's decision to take up employment at all, but also the extent to which this is done. The part-time rate for women with young children under 15 years was 73.3 percent (men: 8.1 percent), yet women with older children over 15 years were still more likely to work part-time (57.4 percent, men: 9.2 percent). Part-time work thus continues even when the children are older, according to the report on atypical employment.
When men work part-time, it is predominantly (59.0 percent) for one of the following three reasons: due to school or vocational training and further education (26.3 percent, women: 9.9 percent), because they do not want a full-time job (23.7 percent, women: 24.8 percent) or because they cannot find one (9.0 percent, women: 6.3 percent).
(APA/Red)
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