This book studies work in the United States and Germany from two new viewpoints: (1) the division of work time into hours per day and days per week (as opposed to the standard analysis of weekly hours of work); and (2) the patterns of the particular times of the day and week when people are working, a focus on instantaneous time use. Information was gathered from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Current Population Surveys for about 20 years and studies from the German Socioeconomic Panel. Following an overview of the research and methods of data collection in the first chapter, the second chapter examines the determinants of days per week and daily hours of work in the two countries, as well as how these differ depending on workers' differing attachment to the work force. The chapter also explores how important work schedules are that differ from the 8-hour day and 5-day week. Chapter 3 studies the instantaneous use of time as it is divided between work and nonwork activities and how family decisions affect the work timing of the spouses. Chapter 4 examines how decisions about days and daily hours and the timing of work respond to changes in individual circumstances. Chapter 5 analyzes how employers combine workers, daily hours, and days per week in production. The final chapter sums up the study findings, such as the following: (1) unusual daily schedules and combinations of days and hours are ubiquitous; (2) a large proportion of the labor forces in both countries work in the evenings; (3) the notion of "shift" is too rigid to be of use; (4) weekly schedules in hours and days vary over the life cycle, with days worked per week varying less than number of hours worked per day; (5) minority groups work more of the undesirable hours in the workweek, but individuals of these groups usually move into more mainstream hours; and (6) the presence of young children reduces mothers' work hours--German mothers are more likely to work fewer hours on more days, whereas U.S. mothers are more likely to work fewer days. (Contains 44 tables, 6 figures, and 74 references.) (KC)