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More flexible working hours: office workers demand new regulations!
Research recommends flexible working hours for office workers: satisfaction remains high, federal government reform is being planned.
More flexible working hours: office workers demand new regulations!
On June 15, 2025, a study was published that sheds light on the working hours of office workers in Germany. Loud Deutschlandfunk The data comes from more than 8,600 respondents and is based on working time surveys by the Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health from 2017, 2019 and 2021. This comprehensive analysis shows that office workers have sufficient flexibility in the organization of their working hours.
The results of the survey are remarkable: Around 90 percent of the employees surveyed are satisfied with their work, regardless of the daily working hours, be it less than 8 hours or more than 10 hours. Only 13 percent of office workers felt overwhelmed by their workload. This low overtaxation rate is linked to the fact that employees who work more than 10 hours a day are not significantly more likely to report exhaustion or other health problems. This suggests that longer work days do not affect overall satisfaction.
Focus on reform of working hours
In the context of these surveys, the federal government is planning a reform that will introduce a maximum weekly working time instead of a daily maximum working time. Loud evangelisch.de This reform aims to give office workers more flexibility without increasing total working hours or changing existing collective agreements.
Labor market expert Oliver Stettes points out that the rigid daily maximum working hours are no longer appropriate for many office workers. More flexible models should enable employees to work longer on one day and shorter on another, in order to be able to better meet family obligations, for example. The importance of organizing working hours that takes individual needs, professional requirements and health aspects into account is becoming increasingly clear.
Despite the positive results, it should be noted that not every job is suitable for longer working hours, particularly for safety and health reasons. However, the analysis of the data collected shows little negative impact of flexible working hours on the satisfaction and well-being of office workers, which underlines the need to adapt working time regulations.