Hours spent in UK offices revealed

Office design news from Morgan Lovell

Published on 08-12-2011

Official figures have shown that people working in full-time jobs in Britain put in more hours than most countries in Europe.

The Office for National Statistics said that Britons work on average 42.7 hours, which is above the EU average of 41.6 hours.

The only places recording longer working weeks than the UK were Austria and Greece, and if Britons spend so long behind their desks then getting the right office design is crucially important.

A third of Britain’s workforce is made up of part-time workers, making it the highest in the EU, according to the figures.

Average overall working hours have been impacted upon by the growing trend to go part-time. In the three months to June the overall average week came in at 36.3 against 38.1 nearly 20 years ago.

The workers putting in the most hours every week were managers and senior officials, with 46.2 hours.

Copyright Press Association 2011