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4d ago

Spain Advances Workweek Reduction Bill to Parliament

The government-approved proposal to cut the standard workweek to 37.5 hours now faces a key parliamentary vote.

FILE - A worker welds a section of the F-111 class frigate's fuselage at a workshop in the Navantia shipyard in Ferrol, northwest Spain, on April 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue, File)
FILE - Workers install solar planers on the roof of a house in Rivas Vaciamadrid, Spain, Thursday, Sept. 15, 2022. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez, File)
FILE -A worker delivers butane gas bottles in Madrid, Spain, Monday, March 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Paul White, File)

Overview

  • The Spanish government has approved a bill to reduce the standard private-sector workweek from 40 to 37.5 hours, benefiting 12.5 million workers.
  • The measure, already in place for civil servants and some industries, is expected to improve productivity and reduce absenteeism, according to the Ministry of Labor.
  • The bill must now pass through a fragmented parliament where the left-wing coalition lacks a clear majority, requiring negotiations with smaller parties.
  • Unions strongly support the proposal, while business associations and the Catalan nationalist party Junts have raised concerns about potential impacts on small businesses and the self-employed.
  • Sumar, the leftist minority partner in Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s coalition, was the driving force behind the legislation.