Flexible working hours

Increasingly, the companies of the capital region are introducing modern, flexible working time arrangements and multiple-shift workforce scheduling models. In particular, the companies established more recently by younger entrepreneurs have made their working hours more flexible to better serve their clients and allow their employees greater freedom. This is pioneered by companies in the multimedia sector as well as the information and communications industries.

Berlin employees work longer hours than the average employee in Germany.

  • The average Berlin resident will work 1,460.4 hours per year.
  • In total, approximately 1.68 million people rack up approximately 2,461 million hours of work per year.
  • Per year, Berlin employees work:
    - 42 hours more than the average employee in the Federal Republic of Germany
    - 52.9 hours more than the average employee in the states of the Federal Republic of Germany before the fall of the Berlin Wall
(Source: State Statistical Institute Berlin-Brandenburg, 2011)


Location advantage: working hours regulations in Berlin

In terms of work time the capital region offers great competitive advantages to companies based on certain requirements:

  • Permission to operate on Sundays and legal holidays
  • Permission to operate 24 hours a day
Call centers or customer communication centers are exempt from the application process.

Costs of labor as compared to other cities in Germany

Compared to other major German cities, Berlin offers a labor cost advantage of 10 to 15%. Temporary employment agencies (such as Randstad) even assume that this advantage amounts to 20%.

Costs of labor as compared to other countries

In the states acceding to the Federal Republic of Germany after the fall of the Berlin Wall (including Berlin), the average labor costs per hour are lower by up to 40% than those in the states that previously made up the Federal Republic of Germany; they are significantly lower than those of many Western industrialized countries.