European Work Time Regulation, Surplus-Value and Underemployment among Full-Time Employees: A Cross-Sectional Analysis using the 2009 EU LFS

Abstract

This paper investigates surplus-value rates and work time patterns among fulltime workers in five European Union economies — France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK — using macroeconomic EUROSTAT data and individual-level data extracted from the 2009 Labour Force Survey. This is considered in terms of the constituent drivers of the rate of surplus-value, in particular working hours. France and the UK are of most interest in terms of work time regulation because of the exceptional nature of their relationship to the European Working Time Directive, 1993 (WTD). The UK is characterised by absolute surplus-value production, whereas we can partially attribute low levels of surplus-value in France to fewer working hours. While this signals some success for workers, evidence indicates the WTD may also have had repercussions for income levels and the family. In the French case reductions in hours may have also depressed real wages (somewhat counteracting the effect of reduced hours in producing low levels of surplus-value), causing underemployment for some, particularly in the 'technicians and associate professionals' and 'all other occupations' categories.