This dataset contains data on full-time and part-time employment based on national definition. Data are broken down by professional status - employees, total employment - sex and standardised age groups (15-24, 25-54, 55+, total).
National definitions of part-time work vary considerably across OECD countries. Essentially three main approaches can be distinguished: i) a classification based on the worker’s perception of his/her employment situation; ii) a cut-off (generally 30 or 35 hours per week) based on usual working hours, with persons usually working fewer hours being considered part-timers; iii) a comparable cut-off based on actual hours worked during the reference week. A criterion based on actual hours will generally yield a part-time rate higher than one based on usual hours, particularly if there are temporary reductions in working time as a result of holidays, illness, short-timing, etc. On the other hand, it is not entirely clear whether a classification based on the worker’s perception will necessarily yield estimates of part-time work that are higher or lower than one based on a fixed cut-off. In one country (France) which changed from 1981 to 1982 from a definition based on an actual hours cut-off (30 hours) to one based on the respondent’s perception, the latter criterion appeared to produce slightly higher estimates.
Other factors as well affect the international comparability of the estimates. In some countries, the hours’ cut-off is based on hours for the main job, in others on total hours for all jobs. Certain countries do not consider unpaid family workers to be employed unless they work more than a minimum number of hours, so that such workers do not enter into counts for part-time workers.
In order to facilitate analysis and comparisons over time, historical data for OECD members have been provided over as long a period as possible, often even before a country became a member of the Organisation. Information on the membership dates of all OECD countries can be found at
OECD Ratification Dates.
For detailed information on labour force surveys for all countries please see
LFS_NOTES_SOURCES.