Alicante’s strategic sectors faced a new challenge yesterday as the idea of limiting the annual work hours to 1,712, equivalent to 37.5 hours per week, moved from proposal to potential policy. The draft law that would shorten the ordinary workday, require daily time tracking, and guarantee the right to disconnect still must clear the Congress. In the meantime, business leaders are running the numbers to understand the implications, and early estimates suggest the math may not add up in practice.
According to data from the Confederation of Valencian Employers (CEV), sector averages in the province of Alicante show 39.2 hours per week in Agriculture, 39.4 in Commerce, 38.4 in Industry, and 39.2 in Services, with Construction listed at 1,736 hours per year. In broad terms, these figures imply that Alicante workers are about two hours above the government’s proposed threshold on a weekly basis. This gap highlights the practical pressures employers would face if a reduced schedule becomes mandatory across different sectors.
Presently, neither side has shifted its position, but the prospect of unions pushing the proposal within expired sector agreements is becoming real. The Confederation notes eight affected agreements: four in Services, including Building and Facility Cleaning and related roles; Vessel Agents; Supermarkets and self-service outlets; and Road Freight. One agreement sits in Commerce—for Retailers and Exp exporters of footwear—and one in Agriculture for Agricultural Activities; and one in Construction and Public Works. In total, these eight cases involve 78,831 workers who could become early test cases for wage negotiations and working conditions. For the unions, including UGT, the reality appears feasible to advance business-by-business, with a shared belief that negotiated, incremental steps could deliver employment protection while gradually adjusting to new rules.
A Corporate Measure?
“Nobody says who will foot the bill,” says Rosa Sánchez, secretary general of the Alicante Metal Federation (Fempa). Sánchez represents a sector that employs more than 35,000 people and illustrates the complexity of reducing hours. She notes that the metal industry already operates at 37.8 hours per week, amounting to about 1,752 hours per year, while the industrial-commercial segment, such as hardware stores, hovers around 1,800 hours annually.
“You cannot implement a company-wide measure without the company presence,” she adds. It is not a flat rejection of shortening the workday, but rather a refusal to accept the process as presented. In contrast, union leaders see real potential for agreements. Yolanda Díaz, the UGT regional secretary general, emphasizes that the challenge is not simply trimming one or two hours. For workers in roles like security, year-end practices show they reach the 80 overtime hours mark, and this reality creates an opening to negotiate for quality employment rather than just shorter hours.
From there, the economic trio of Alicante—the agricultural sector, services, and construction—emerges as the true test. Asaja Alicante’s president, José Vicente Andreu, points to a persistent labor shortage on farms and during campaigns. A reduction in hours would likely raise costs for small and medium growers who must cover the same tasks in fewer hours, with a potential rise in consumer prices in the medium term. The implication is clear: any policy change will ripple through the supply chain, influencing pricing and profitability.
Within industry, footwear stands out as a vital sector. Roughly 20,000 workers fall under its umbrella. Vicente Pastor, president of Avecal, warns that the proposed cap on weekly hours cannot be applied to footwear without accounting for annual-hour fluctuations caused by workload peaks. He argues that the sector’s viability rests on recognizing cumulative annual hours rather than a fixed weekly maximum, a point echoed by others who see a similar pattern across different industries. And so the discussion continues, with each sector mapping its own constraints and opportunities as negotiators weigh a balanced path forward.
In sum, the debate around reducing the standard workweek in Alicante touches three core economic pillars. The reform’s footprint stretches from farm fields to factory floors, from storefronts to construction sites. Stakeholders acknowledge the ambition behind the policy but stress the need for careful calibration that considers sector-specific cycles, worker well-being, and the broader cost picture for families and businesses alike. As the process unfolds, the province watches closely how collective bargaining could reshape employment in the short term while aiming for sustainable, quality jobs in the long run.