The Ministry of Industry has launched a pilot designed to involve about 150 companies in testing a four-day workweek, equating to 32 hours per week, within their operating templates. The department, led by a senior official, unveiled the project with its allocated budget to the public, totaling 10 million euros. Submissions for participation claims will be accepted until 30 June. This initiative reflects a request from a political ally to support the final General Government Budgets, and the program is expected to begin later in the year. The core aim is to determine whether reducing working hours while keeping salaries steady is financially feasible for firms and whether it affects productivity or profit margins.
Details on implementation remain to be defined. Insiders familiar with discussions between Industry and allied partners indicate the startup spectrum could include around 150 companies, with the precise size not yet fixed. The project documents indicate the initial participants are expected to be small and medium-sized enterprises in the manufacturing sector.
A key idea discussed in Industry’s latest talks with its partners is to seek financial support from international partners, proposing aid in the range of 2,000 to 3,000 euros per eligible employee. The intention is to help offset the early-stage financial impact of hours reductions, without reducing wages, and to channel this funding into process improvements that compensate for fewer hours by boosting efficiency. A missing element is whether a minimum share of the workforce must opt into the hourly subsidy.
rise controversy
Debates about the four-day workweek are heating up across Europe and Spain’s labor landscape. In the United Kingdom, a government program began in early June involving 70 companies. Together, the organization—employing more than 30,000 workers—will evaluate whether a reduced workweek can improve quality of life without sacrificing output. In Belgium, authorities reinterpreted the framework and approved a compressed schedule that lets firms shorten the workweek by one day while increasing daily hours for the remaining days.
In Spain, the situation is nuanced: some firms have explored shorter weeks without cutting wages, while others have adjusted salaries to align with the reduced hours. For example, a major telecommunications employer permitted staff to shift to part-time arrangements by reducing hours and wages correspondingly, coupled with a modest bonus. Regionally, the Valencian Generalitat has launched its own pilot program to support businesses that adopt a 32-hour workweek. If a longer-term extension were adopted over three years, each employee could see a total financial impact approaching 9,611 euros.
Throughout these discussions, observers emphasize that the ultimate success of any four-day model will depend on industry, company size, and the nature of work. Early indicators will measure not only morale and job satisfaction but also the ability to sustain output, maintain customer service levels, and manage costs. Stakeholders point out that adopting shorter workweeks may require reimagining workflows, investing in automation, and calibrating incentive structures to preserve productivity. In this evolving landscape, many see a trend toward smarter scheduling rather than simply shorter hours, aiming to unlock higher efficiency while preserving competitiveness across US and Canadian markets as well.
As more nations experiment with compressed work patterns, the conversation continues to shift—from whether to cut hours to how to maintain value and performance in the face of shorter calendars. Analysts warn that success will hinge on careful design, clear targets, and ongoing evaluation. In the end, the question remains whether a 32-hour week can be a viable blueprint for modern industry, balancing worker well-being with the needs of busy supply chains, and whether governments should foreground such pilots as a path to sustainable growth.