Working time in countries of the European Union in 2010 – selected aspects
The aim of this article is to characterise briefly working time on labour markets in countries of the
European Union. There were presented its main indicators such as age, gender or type of employment.
There were also described general impacts of the number of working hours on capacity to
reconcile employment with commitments in family and private life. The discussed problems are
confirming the assumption that the working time arrangement is a fundamental factor influencing
quality of life both inside and outside work. The reconciliation of work with private life or life
outside work is a longstanding goal of EU employment and social policies. It is an element of the
Europe 2020 strategy not only to enable more people to take up paid work, but also to promote
greater gender equality. As emphasised, people in their ‘prime working years’ – especially
women – are particularly involved in unpaid work, such as childcare, household jobs or care of
the elderly, so the issue of work – life balance extends across the whole working age. Flexible
working time arrangements are generally seen as a way to improve employees’ work-life balance.

The aim of this article is to characterise briefly working time on labour markets in countries of the
European Union. There were presented its main indicators such as age, gender or type of employment.
There were also described general impacts of the number of working hours on capacity to
reconcile employment with commitments in family and private life. The discussed problems are
confirming the assumption that the working time arrangement is a fundamental factor influencing
quality of life both inside and outside work. The reconciliation of work with private life or life
outside work is a longstanding goal of EU employment and social policies. It is an element of the
Europe 2020 strategy not only to enable more people to take up paid work, but also to promote
greater gender equality. As emphasised, people in their ‘prime working years’ – especially
women – are particularly involved in unpaid work, such as childcare, household jobs or care of
the elderly, so the issue of work – life balance extends across the whole working age. Flexible
working time arrangements are generally seen as a way to improve employees’ work-life balance.