A four-day working day, maintaining workers’ pay, productivity and growth for the rest of the day is discussed for three days, which has been progressing for some time between workers, companies and governments. In December last year, the first pilot project was approved in Spain -within the industrial sector – to carry out this experiment. Companies that sign up for a competition organized by the Ministry of Industry can receive subsidies of up to 200,000 euros if they create this factory for at least two years.
The Basque Country also went a step further and announced its intention to try a four-day work week, becoming the first Spanish community to join this initiative. Its purpose is to evaluate its benefits in the productivity and quality of life of workers and it is expected to involve some 3,000 people from the Basque Country.
A pilot project in Spain
In December 2022, the first national pilot project to test the four-day work week was published in the State Gazette (BOE). Promoted by the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism, who have opened the competitiveness of SMEs in the industrial sector to receive assistance of up to 200,000 cash if they commit for two years to implement this normal modal. This order stipulates that participating companies must reduce their employee hours by a minimum of 10%. So if an employee works a 40 hour shift week – the most frequent of all – he will work at least 34 hours.
In addition, the company will not be able to pay its workers less, because the bases must comply with the total prohibition of reducing working time in exchange for a decrease in salary. “The ordinary working day is carried out in the preceding terms, in no case will it affect the remuneration of the salary that legally or appropriately corresponds to 100 working days”, says the BOE. Therefore, workers will work fewer hours, but will receive the same salary.
A win in the UK
In Britain, there is also a trial of a four-day week and of the 61 companies that have joined the project, 56 have decided to extend this work project and 18 have decided to make it permanent. For all of them it is possible to reduce the number of hours worked, and increase the well-being of employees and even increase their productivity.
Last month, the results of the proposed 4 Week – 4 day week – were shared before a UK House of Commons committee. Academics from the universities of Oxford, Cambridge and Boston shared it and the experiment is based on the model known as 100-80-100: save 100% of the salary, reduce the day’s work to 80% and save at least . 100% productivity.
The difference between the Spanish pilot project is that the British one sought partnerships from different parts. From a fish and chip restaurant to a robotics startup or law firm. In total, more than 2,900 workers were involved in this experiment.
departures
From the Commissions of Workers (CCOO) they understand that the ideal situation exists to carry out this change through automation and digitization processes. Esther Martin, secretary of the Union Action and Equality union, states that “we should not have the labor relations that we deserve because we have marathon work days where its absence is visible. We are physically and mentally tired to reconcile what we can throw”.
