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France actual hours worked in main job index: men

France actual hours worked in main job index: men stood at 105.6 in Q2 2026, according to Eurostat – labour market slack by sex and age, quarterly (lfsi_sla_q). It is one of the indicators in the Labour market indicators (Eurostat) table (Value · Quarterly), with a complete series running from Q1 2009 to Q2 2026. The complete series with an interactive chart, free to download.

Source: Eurostat – labour market slack by sex and age, quarterly (lfsi_sla_q)Last updated: Curated by Bui Thanh Phuc
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This indicator in the Labour market indicators (Eurostat) table

IndicatorQ2-2026Q1-2026Q4-2025Q3-2025Q2-2025Q1-2025Q4-2024Q3-2024Q2-2024Q1-2024
Actual hours worked in the main job, index 2021=100
Men105.6104.8107.2106.4106.3105.6105.4106105.9105
Women108.3106.9108.5107.5108.4106.8106.6108.1106.8105.9

Understanding france actual hours worked in main job index: men

Tracking the total volume of labor actually performed by employed male workers at their primary occupation, this index scales time spent on the job against a designated base period assigned a fixed value. Unlike measures counting headcount employment or standard contractual hours, this metric captures physical attendance and overtime while excluding secondary jobs, unpaid chores, and contractual time lost due to vacations or sickness. The scope encompasses all male wage earners and self-employed men holding a primary job, measuring relative shifts in operational workload rather than absolute hours.

Interpreting this index necessitates adjusting for holiday timing variations across quarters, as movable public holidays and collective summer shut-down periods create predictable troughs that distort period-on-period evaluations. Comparing annual changes provides a clearer picture of underlying labor demand dynamics by smoothing out these calendar anomalies. Revisions to early estimates occur when late survey responses are processed or when seasonal adjustment models are updated. Analysts should avoid treating this index as interchangeable with total employment headcounts, because rising output per worker can push the index higher even when the number of employed men remains stationary.

Frequently asked questions

What does the base value of the index represent?
The reference period carries a value of 100, against which all subsequent and prior quarters are proportionally scaled.
Does this index include hours worked in secondary jobs?
No, the measurement is strictly confined to the main job held by each employed male.
How do seasonal holidays affect the index readings?
Quarters containing heavy holiday periods typically exhibit lower index values due to reduced working days.

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