Southwestern town recorded the lowest employment rate.
In a surprising turn of events, the city and district in the southwest where people worked the least on average has been identified as Tübingen, a university town with a significant student population.
In 2023, Tübingen, with about 88,000 inhabitants and 28,000 students, had the most significant decrease in work hours in Baden-Württemberg, with an average of 1,265 hours per employed person. This is lower than the national average and even lower in the service sector, where the average work hours were 1,220 hours.
The reasons behind this phenomenon can be linked primarily to Tübingen's character as a university town. The local economy is oriented around university-related services, small cafes, restaurants, and leisure activities, typically featuring part-time and flexible jobs rather than full-time industrial labor.
The significant student presence prioritizes academic schedules and leisure over full-time employment, reducing average working hours. The high proportion of women working part-time in Tübingen also contributes to the low number of work hours. Every second employed woman in Baden-Württemberg works part-time, but the rate is higher in Tübingen.
The availability of extensive sports and recreational activities organized by the university, promoting work-life balance, and the cultural patterns in a university town that emphasize quality of life, education, and community engagement, may also contribute to shorter formal work hours compared to more industrial or commercial regions of Baden-Württemberg.
Despite Tübingen having the lowest work hours, the total work hours in Baden-Württemberg increased in 2023. However, this increase is not due to more hours worked per person, but rather due to an increase in the number of employees. The reasons behind this increase are not specified.
It's important to note that the work ethic across the country is reportedly declining, but the specific reasons are not mentioned in this report. The southwest had the highest short-time work rate nationwide in 2023, particularly in economically sensitive districts of Baden-Württemberg.
The statistic revealing the city and district where the least work is done in the southwest is surprising due to its specificity and the lack of information provided about the reasons behind it. Further research is required to fully understand the socio-economic and cultural conditions that influence work patterns in Tübingen and other university towns.
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In Tübingen, the university town with a significant student population, the availability of extensive sports and recreational activities organized by the university promote a work-life balance, potentially leading children to engage more in sports rather than focusing solely on work. Moreover, the university town's cultural patterns, emphasizing quality of life, education, and community engagement, may encourage less formal work hours compared to more industrial or commercial regions.
