Spain could become one of the first countries in the world to trial a four-day work week after the government agreed to launch a modest pilot project for companies interested in the idea.
Earlier this year, the small left-wing party Mas Pais announced that the government had accepted its proposal to test out the idea. Talks have since been held, with the next meeting expected to take place in the coming weeks.
“With the four-day work week [32 hours], we’re launching into the real debate of our times,” Inigo Errejon of Mas Pais wrote on Twitter. “It’s an idea whose time has come.”
From New Zealand to Germany, the idea has been steadily gaining ground. Hailed by its proponents as a means to increase productivity, improve the mental health of workers and fight climate change, the proposal has taken on new significance as the COVID-19 pandemic sharpens issues around well-being, burnout and work-life balance.
Left-wing parties in Spain — where a 44-day strike in Barcelona in 1919 resulted in the country becoming one of the first in western Europe to adopt the eight-hour workday — have seized on the idea.
“Spain is one of the countries where workers put in more hours than the European average, but we’re not among the most productive countries,” Errejon said. “I maintain that working more hours does not mean working better.”
While the exact details of the pilot are to be hashed out with the government, his party has proposed a three-year, US$70 million project that would allow companies to trial reduced hours with minimal risk.
For example, the costs of a company’s foray into the four-day work week could be covered at 100 percent the first year, 50 percent the second year and 33 percent the third year.
“With these figures, we calculate that we could have about 200 companies participate, with a total of anywhere from 3,000 to 6,000 workers,” Hector Tejero of Mas Pais said. “The only red lines are that we want to see a true reduction of working hours and no loss of salary or jobs.”
“Spain will be the first country to undertake a trial of this magnitude,” Tejero said. “A pilot project like this hasn’t been undertaken anywhere in the world.”
The party has suggested that the pilot be guided by a panel of experts — including representatives from government, workers’ unions and business lobbies — who would also help analyze the results.
What Mas Pais is hoping to see is an echo of the experience of Software Delsol, the southern Spanish firm that last year became the first in the country to implement a four-day work week.
“They saw a reduction in absenteeism, productivity went up and workers say they are happier,” Tejero said.
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