Since reunification, employees in Germany have never worked as much as they did last year. Although it is primarily the increasing employment of women that has led to the sharp rise, almost half of them work part-time and many would like to work more, according to a study by the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW Berlin). „Their potential for the labor market therefore remains partially untapped,“ warns study author Mattis Beckmannshagen. The DIW researchers therefore recommend making better use of the labor market potential of women and eliminating false incentives.

Specifically, they suggest reforms to income tax brackets and the splitting of income between spouses. These „could, for example, make it more worthwhile for second earners to extend their working hours beyond the mini-job limit,“ explains study author Annika Sperling. However, in order to increase women's labor supply, a fairer distribution of childcare and household tasks is also needed. Politicians could support this development with additional daycare places and parental leave arrangements for fathers.

However, the proposal for tax-free overtime is viewed skeptically. Many questions remain unanswered here. „If there are any changes to working hours at all, existing role distributions could be cemented,“ explains Beckmannshagen. „This is because it will often be the man with the higher income who extends his working hours and works overtime.“ The majority of the housework is then more likely to be done by the woman. In France, for example, a tax exemption on overtime had no effect on the total volume of work.

In 2023, dependent employees in this country worked a total of around 55 billion hours, compared to 52 billion in 1991. At the same time, however, the average weekly working hours of employees have fallen continuously. According to the study, the fact that female labor force participation rose by 16 percentage points to 73% between 1991 and 2022 reflects the change in society from a one-earner household to a two-earner household.

However, women still spend significantly more time on childcare and housework than men. When it comes to gainful employment, the opposite is still true – women work an average of around 33 hours, while men work 40 hours. The average weekly working hours of women have remained constant since 2011, while those of men have fallen slightly – without them catching up in terms of care and housework. „If the current trend continues, it will be decades before men and women spend the same amount of time on childcare in particular,“ the researchers emphasize.