Greeks now spend an average of 35.3 years at work during their lifetime, according to new figures from Eurostat. That marks a rise of nearly 12% since 2000, when the average stood at 31.4 years.
The increase reflects Greece’s slow but steady climb in what statisticians call the “duration of working life,” a measure that tracks how many years a person aged 15 or older can expect to work before leaving the labor market for good.
Despite the gain, Greece still trails the wider European Union. The EU average reached 37.5 years in 2025, up from 37.2 the year before. That means Greeks work about two years less than the typical EU citizen over a lifetime.
Greek men work far more years than Greek women
The gap between men and women in Greece remains wide. Greek men can expect to work 38.5 years, while Greek women can expect just 31.8 years, a difference of 6.7 years. Still, women have posted the bigger gain since 2000.
Back then, Greek women worked an average of only 24.7 years. That figure has since climbed by more than seven years. Men, meanwhile, saw little movement, edging up from 37.7 years to 38.5.
Across the EU as a whole, the gender gap is narrower. Men can expect to work 39.5 years on average, and women 35.4 years, a difference of just over four years. The EU total has also grown steadily. Its average working life expanded by 2.3 years since 2016, when it stood at 35.2 years.
Some countries post far higher numbers than Greece. Seven EU nations report an expected working life of 40 years or more. The Netherlands tops the list at 44.0 years, followed by Sweden at 43.4, Denmark at 42.6, Estonia at 41.5, Ireland at 40.7, Germany at 40.2 and Finland at 40.1.
Greece falls near the bottom as women’s work years trail Europe
At the other end, Romania records the shortest working life in the EU at 32.7 years, followed by Italy at 33.0 and Bulgaria at 34.6. Greece sits just above that group, ranking among the five lowest in the entire bloc.
The gender divide also stands out elsewhere in Europe. Greek women’s expected working life of 31.8 years ranks among the lowest in the EU, behind only Italy at 28.4 years and Romania at 29.1.
By contrast, women in Sweden, the Netherlands and Estonia can each expect to work more than 41 years, roughly a decade longer than their Greek counterparts.
The numbers suggest Greece, like several of its southern and eastern neighbors, still has ground to make up as working lives lengthen across the bloc.
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