Weekly Hours - Historical Chart
Average Weekly Hours of All Employees, Total Private. Gray shaded areas indicate U.S. recessions.
Source: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (FRED), Series AWHNONAG. Shaded areas = NBER recession dates. Updated 2026-03-09.
What the Feb 2026 Data Shows
At 34, the weekly hours in Feb 2026 is below the 10-year average of 34 by 0.00. The reading has been mixed recently, fluctuating without a clear directional trend over the past 6 months.
FRED series AWHNONAG reports the average weekly hours worked by all private nonfarm employees. This metric is a leading indicator of labor demand because employers adjust hours before adjusting headcount. When business slows, companies cut hours first (cheaper than layoffs). When demand picks up, they add hours before hiring new workers.
The historical average is approximately 34.3-34.5 hours per week. Readings above 34.5 suggest strong demand, while readings below 34.0 signal weakness. The range is narrow because structural factors (labor law, shift patterns, part-time employment share) limit how much average hours can move.
Despite the narrow range, changes of even 0.1 hours per week are significant. Across 160 million workers, a 0.1-hour change equals 16 million hours of labor per week -- equivalent to adding or removing 400,000 full-time workers.
What This Metric Measures
This page tracks the average weekly hours worked by all employees on private nonfarm payrolls, from the BLS Current Employment Statistics survey. The data comes from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis FRED database, series AWHNONAG, updated monthly.
Historical Context
The all-time peak was 39 in May 1965 — roughly 1.1x the current level. The all-time trough was 33 in Jun 2009. During COVID-19 in 2020, the reading hit 34 (Nov 2020). Year-over-year, the metric has moved 0.6%.
Why It Matters
Average weekly hours is one of the Conference Board's ten Leading Economic Indicators (LEI) components because it signals labor demand changes before they show up in employment or unemployment data. A declining hours trend foreshadows layoffs by 2-4 months.
For small business owners, falling average hours in your industry is a signal that peers are seeing weaker demand. If the national average is falling while your employees are working overtime, you may be gaining share -- or may be the last to feel the slowdown.
What This Means for Business Owners
Understanding where this metric stands relative to historical norms helps business owners make better borrowing decisions. Metrics far from their 10-year average often signal turning points that affect the cost and availability of credit.
Average Weekly Hours Worked - Frequently Asked Questions
Average weekly hours for all private employees are 33.80 hours in Feb 2026, per FRED series AWHNONAG.
Hours moved unchanged by 0.00 from Jan 2026. The reading has been mixed recently, fluctuating without a clear directional trend over the past 6 months.
Across 160 million private employees, 0.1 hours equals 16 million hours per week -- equivalent to 400,000 full-time jobs. Small changes in average hours translate to enormous changes in total labor input.
Leading. Employers cut hours before cutting workers. Declining hours typically precede rising unemployment by 2-4 months. It is one of the Conference Board's ten LEI components.
Readings below 34.0 hours have historically coincided with recessions. The 2009 recession saw average hours drop to approximately 33.7 hours, the lowest in the data.
FRED series AWHNONAG, from the BLS Current Employment Statistics (CES) survey. Published monthly as part of the Employment Situation report.