As European leaders make various plans for how to get their ailing economies back on their feet, let’s take a look at the data on how hard different nations are working, ditching the stereotypes of hard-working Germans and lazy Greeks.

According to Eurostat, Serbs and Greeks are the most “hard-working”, Germany ranks only 24th in Europe (in terms of hours worked without productivity). True, Greek statistics have often been “corrected”, but given the high level of youth unemployment (almost a quarter of young people are unemployed), the figures for hours worked do not seem exaggerated.

In the overall rating, Romania takes fourth place, but if you look at the details, the picture changes dramatically.

(click image to enlarge)

Romanian trade workers rank 18th in the EU in terms of hours worked, with Greece and Switzerland working the most in trade (about 8 hours per week more than in Romania). The working time of a full-time employee was taken into account.

In tourism, Romanians rank 24th in the EU in terms of hours worked. Greece and Switzerland work the most in the field of tourism, and this can be seen from the income that this sector brings (last year the Greeks received 20 billion euros from tourism)

In the banking sector, Romania ranks 21st in terms of the number of hours worked, while the Swiss, Luxembourgers and Icelanders occupy the first places. At the opposite pole, the Finns and Dutch are the most “relaxed”.

And in terms of public administration, we are in the middle of the European ranking (11th place). Switzerland, Austria, Sweden and Malta have the most demanding civil servants, while the Dutch and Spanish have the most relaxed.(click image to enlarge)