Equal treatment of part-time workers, by country
Five statutes forbid worse treatment of part-time staff, but they differ in how they say what the worker is owed. Germany and Austria spell out a pro rata share, of pay and divisible benefits in Germany and of voluntary social benefits in Austria. Spain gives part-timers the same rights, proportional to time worked where the right allows. The Netherlands bars distinction by working hours and voids contrary clauses, and Norway extends its discrimination chapter to part-time workers.
| Country | The rule | Difference allowed when | Pro rata benefits | Effect of breach or burden of proof |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Austria | Part-time employees may not be disadvantaged compared with full-time employees because of part-time work | Objective reasons justify a different treatment | Voluntary social benefits at least in proportion to regular working time against normal working time | In a dispute the employer must prove the disadvantage is not because of part-time work |
| Germany | A part-time employee may not be treated worse than a comparable full-time employee because of part-time work | Objective reasons justify a different treatment | Pay or other divisible benefit at least in proportion to the share of working time | |
| Spain | Part-time workers have the same rights as full-time workers | Where the nature of the right calls for it, recognised proportionally to time worked | Absence of direct or indirect discrimination between women and men must be guaranteed | |
| Netherlands | An employer may not distinguish between employees by working hours in the terms on which a contract is made, continued or ended | The distinction is objectively justified | A clause in breach is void | |
| Norway | The chapter’s ban on discrimination applies correspondingly to part-time employees | The difference is necessary for an objective purpose and not disproportionately intrusive |
Country by country
Austria
- Rule
- Arbeitszeitgesetz § 19d (6)
- A collective agreement may fix the period used to calculate the social benefits (section 19d (7)). The section also sets an overtime-style surcharge on extra hours, which is not part of this table.
Teilzeitbeschäftigte Arbeitnehmer dürfen wegen der Teilzeitarbeit gegenüber vollzeitbeschäftigten Arbeitnehmern nicht benachteiligt werden, es sei denn, sachliche Gründe rechtfertigen eine unterschiedliche Behandlung.Freiwillige Sozialleistungen sind zumindest in jenem Verhältnis zu gewähren, das dem Verhältnis der regelmäßig geleisteten Arbeitszeit zur gesetzlichen oder kollektivvertraglichen Normalarbeitszeit entspricht.Im Streitfall hat der Arbeitgeber zu beweisen, daß eine Benachteiligung nicht wegen der Teilzeitarbeit erfolgt. Germany
- Rule
- TzBfG § 4 (1)
- The comparison is with a comparable full-time employee. The same section applies a parallel rule to fixed-term employees (subsection 2).
Ein teilzeitbeschäftigter Arbeitnehmer darf wegen der Teilzeitarbeit nicht schlechter behandelt werden als ein vergleichbarer vollzeitbeschäftigter Arbeitnehmer, es sei denn, dass sachliche Gründe eine unterschiedliche Behandlung rechtfertigen.Einem teilzeitbeschäftigten Arbeitnehmer ist Arbeitsentgelt oder eine andere teilbare geldwerte Leistung mindestens in dem Umfang zu gewähren, der dem Anteil seiner Arbeitszeit an der Arbeitszeit eines vergleichbaren vollzeitbeschäftigten Arbeitnehmers entspricht. Spain
- Rule
- Estatuto de los Trabajadores art. 12 (4) d)
- The proportional treatment applies to rights recognised in statutes, regulations and collective agreements. The text quoted lists no justification for a difference.
Las personas trabajadoras a tiempo parcial tendrán los mismos derechos que los trabajadores a tiempo completo.Cuando corresponda en atención a su naturaleza, tales derechos serán reconocidos en las disposiciones legales y reglamentarias y en los convenios colectivos de manera proporcional, en función del tiempo trabajado Netherlands
- Rule
- BW 7 art. 648
- The article also bars the employer from disadvantaging an employee who invoked the rule, and lets the human rights institute investigate. It states no pro rata formula.
De werkgever mag geen onderscheid maken tussen werknemers op grond van een verschil in arbeidsduur in de voorwaarden waaronder een arbeidsovereenkomst wordt aangegaan, voortgezet dan wel opgezegd, tenzij een dergelijk onderscheid objectief gerechtvaardigd is.Een beding in strijd met lid 1 is nietig. Norway
- Rule
- Arbeidsmiljøloven §§ 13-1 (3) and 13-3 (2)
- The statute does not name full-time workers as the comparison; it extends the chapter’s discrimination rules to part-time and temporary employees. It states no pro rata formula.
Bestemmelsene i dette kapittel gjelder tilsvarende ved diskriminering av arbeidstaker som arbeider deltid eller er midlertidig ansatt. Forskjellsbehandling som er nødvendig for å oppnå et saklig formål og som ikke er uforholdsmessig inngripende overfor den eller de som forskjellsbehandles er ikke i strid med forbudet mot indirekte diskriminering, diskriminering på grunn av alder eller diskriminering av arbeidstaker som arbeider deltid eller er midlertidig ansatt. Countries not in this table yet
France, Sweden, Japan, Australia and Canada are left out: the searches of their ingested texts found no general equal-treatment rule for part-time workers. The United States (federal law) and the United Kingdom are not covered by the ingested acts.
How this table was built
Every row is taken from the official, consolidated text of the statute, which LawAsked loads from each government’s legislation service.
Each figure is tied to a passage quoted word for word from that text. When the page is served, it checks that every quoted passage is still in the current text of a law that is in force; if a law is amended and its wording changes, that row is hidden until a person reviews it again.
The table shows the statutory minimum only. Collective agreements, awards and individual contracts often give more than the statute, and some countries let a collective agreement set different terms.
Use this data
The table and the CSV are free to reuse under CC BY 4.0: credit LawAsked and link to this page. Quoted statute text stays under the terms of its official source.
How to cite this page
LawAsked, “Equal treatment of part-time workers, by country”, https://lawasked.com/guides/part-time-equal-treatment (reviewed October 25, 2026).
Important Legal Disclaimer
General legal information, not formal legal advice. The information provided on LawAsked does not constitute formal legal advice and creates no attorney-client relationship. If you require legal assistance, please consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction.