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Which Countries Work The Most Hours?

which countries work the most hours
We all like to believe that we work the hardest. But there’s a big difference between working hard and working long hours. After a previous post highlighted which countries take the most holidays, we thought it would be interesting to see which countries worked the longest hours.

RS Components have created a beautiful infographic that details the typical amount of hours worked in each country.

Countries that work the most hours:
  1. Nepal (54 hours)
  2. Myanmar (51 hours)
  3. Qatar (50 hours)
  4. Bangladesh (49 hours)
  5. Mongolia (48 hours)

Countries that work the least hours:

  1. Netherlands (32 hours)
  2. Australia, New Zealand (33 hours)
  3. Denmark, (34 hours)
  4. Belarus, Canada, Ghana, Norway (35 hours)
  5. Austria, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Israel, Mozambique, Sweden, United Kingdom (36 hours)

All five of the hardest working countries are based in Asia – all of which work over 48 hours per week which averages on 9.6 hours each weekday
The countries who work the least hours per week are mainly based in Europe and Australasia – none of which work over 36 hours a week.

Work smarter not harder

It’s interesting to note the cultural and geographical influence on working hours. It’s also important to bear in mind that long hours do not necessarily equate to productive behaviours.

Within recruitment, effective time management is absolutely integral. You will often be dealing with various projects, working on different types of roles, with different agencies/clients, and have to seamlessly transition between these tasks, AND stick to multiple deadlines. It’s exhausting, right? So it’s no surprise that this job can lead to long hours and a good deal of stress.

When you’re attempting to become more productive it can be easier to focus on forming one good habit at a time. We’ve highlighted the Pomodoro technique as one way of taking control of your productivity

Pomodoro Technique

The Pomodoro method involves working solidly for 25 minutes, followed by a 5-minute break (go for a walk, make a coffee, meditate etc.). Every 4 Pomodoros, you can take a 20-30 minute break.
You can then use this unit of time (a Pomodoro) to both measures and estimate how long a task takes you. During this time, you should not tolerate any distractions; your phone should be on silent/off, you should ignore emails and social media until later. Using this method, you will be able to break up your day into manageable chunks and become more productive in turn.

You’ll probably find you spend less time doing the same tasks using this method, than through your usual approach.

To learn more about becoming fine-tuning your recruitment process and working in a smarter way, check out our online Recruiter Academy

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