Workers in Spain could soon be enjoying a four-day working week after the government agreed to launch a trial project for companies interested in testing the idea.
If successful, the scheme could be rolled out across the country - making Spain one of the only nations in the world to permanently introduce a four-day working week, with the hopes of improving employment rates and productivity.
Per The Guardian, the scheme was announced earlier this year by the small leftwing Spanish party Más País, who revealed that the Spanish government had agreed to test the idea.
Más País representative Iñigo Errejón wrote on Twitter:
"With the four-day work week (32 hours), we’re launching into the real debate of our times. It’s an idea whose time has come."
It is believed that a shorter working week will not only tackle unemployment numbers and productivity levels, but also improve the mental health of workers and help fight climate change.
The Guardian also reports that the proposal has been spurred on by the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, which has resulted in many people struggling to maintain a healthy work-life balance.
"I maintain that working more hours does not mean working better," Errejón added.
Exact details of the trial are still to be decided by the government, but Más País has reportedly proposed a three-year, €50 million ($69.4 million) project that would allow participating companies to trial the four-day week with little risk.
Héctor Tejero of Más País predicts that around 200 companies will participate, meaning between 3,000 to 6,000 workers will be enjoying an extra day off.
"Spain will be the first country to undertake a trial of this magnitude," Tejero added. "A pilot project like this hasn’t been undertaken anywhere in the world."
Más País has also stated that the trial should be guided by a panel of experts from the government, workers unions, and business lobbies.
Spain is far from the first nation to have the idea of legitimately introducing a four-day working week, as the idea was also voiced by Finland's prime minister Sanna Marin back in 2019.
According to The Independent, the Social Democratic Party leader said at her party's conference in the fall of 2019: "I believe people deserve to spend more time with their families, loved ones, hobbies and other aspects of life, such as culture. This could be the next step for us in working life."
I'm sure this is something many of us would like to see become a reality in our own workplaces.