Spain to trial new working week rule

Spain could be one of the first countries in the world to trial a four-day work week after the government agreed to launch a test project for companies that will be closely watched by other nations.

Small left-wing party Mas Pais put forward the idea of a three-year, 50 million euro ($60 million) project "that would allow companies to trial reduced hours with minimal risk", The Guardian's correspondent in Madrid reported.

"With the four-day work week (32 hours), we're launching into the real debate of our times," said Inigo Errejon of Mas Pais in a social media post. "It's an idea whose time has come."

Costs for companies that take part in the experiment could be covered at 100 percent in the first year, 50 percent in the second year and 33 percent in the third year, the party said.

"With these figures, we calculate that we could have around 200 companies participate, with a total of anywhere from 3,000 to 6,000 workers," said Hector Tejero of Mas Pais, quoted in The Guardian. "The only red lines are that we want to see a true reduction of working hours and no loss of salary or jobs."

The last time a nation had a national initiative to reduce working hours was when France moved to cap the working week at 35 hours in 1998.

Mas Pais estimates that the pilot could get under way as early as the fall this year. "Spain will be the first country to undertake a trial of this magnitude," said Tejero. "A pilot project like this hasn't been undertaken anywhere in the world."

Supporters of the concept see it as a means to "increase productivity, improve the mental health of workers and fight climate change", The Guardian noted.

The proposal comes after the novel coronavirus pandemic has brought issues of work-life balance to the fore. Critics of the program, including business groups in Spain, say that with the country in the wake of a recession, more work is required, "not less".

Analysis by BBVA Research shows that 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," said Errejon. "I maintain that working more hours does not mean working better."

The trial project will be closely tracked in the United Kingdom and elsewhere.

Joe Ryle of the 4 Day Week Campaign in the UK said: "We're calling on governments across the world to follow the Spanish example in paving the way for the four-day work week."

He added: "Clearly the way that we work is making people stressed, burned out, overworked and causing massive workplace and mental health issues."