Immaculate Martinez | València (EFE).- The city of Valencia examines from this coming Monday, April 10, how the working day of four days a week works for four weeks, as three consecutive bank holidays coincide and transfer a holiday from January to this month.
Thus, the weeks of April 10 (Easter Monday), April 17 (San Vicente Ferrer), April 24 (for January 22, San Vicente Mártir) and May 1 (Labor Day) will only be four weeks. working days, in a pilot project promoted by the City Council to test the impact of the application in the city and the consequences on productivity, leisure, mobility, the economy and the health of people working 32 hours a week.
The Las Naves innovation center of the City Council will evaluate the results to have the conclusions of this test as of July 20.
The proposal
The proposal has started from a process of dialogue with the sectors involved – unions, companies, neighborhood entities, institutions and other social agents – and the experience adds to other similar ones carried out in various countries around the world, including Lithuania, the United Kingdom , New Zealand, Germany, Sweden, Iceland, Portugal or Japan.
The mayor, Joan Ribó, points out that Valencia is a European benchmark in innovation and this is an innovative experience. “We want a friendly, healthy city that takes care of people. We want people to work to live, not live to work, ”he said on March 24 during the launch of an information campaign on the four-day workday.
The reduction of the working day is a matter subject to negotiation between the unions and the employer, but the consistory wants to do the test and study “what happens” with quantitative and objective data.
What does the pilot program analyze about the working day?
From the pilot program, three large areas will be studied: health and social well-being, the climate emergency and the economy.
In this way, issues such as the use of time, the reconciliation of work life, the feeling of well-being, rest, the impact of the measure on greenhouse gases, air quality, silence, consumption energy, traffic, the public transport network, domestic tourism, hospitality, commerce and shopping in stores, among other issues.
Why is it time for this debate?
According to the mayor, the pandemic created the possibility of working remotely, aided by advances in technology, and brought about a change of conception in the way of working, different from face-to-face.
On the other hand, the fight against climate change is another factor in trying to reduce polluting emissions with fewer daily commutes, which also favors this change in culture towards other ways of working.
“I am optimistic and now we have to go one step further”, as has been done with the pedestrianization of spaces in the city center, where it has been shown that the reduction in vehicle traffic does not reduce store sales, according to Mayor.
In order to “stimulate” the reduction of working hours, in the Valencian Community the Department of Sustainable Economy, Productive Sectors, Commerce and Labor offered aid to companies for its application, without affecting the salaries of staff.
In addition, in 2022 it offered aid of more than 9,000 euros to companies for each person who joins the 32-hour day, always with a prior agreement with the employee’s legal representation and a productivity improvement plan.