In April 2023, a relevant initiative was announced regarding labor law in Mexico, which would mark a before and after in this area: within the framework of the reforms to the Federal Labor Law (LFT), a reduction of the working day from 48 to 40 hours per week was proposed. A measure that caused controversy and has encountered obstacles on its way to being approved, to this day.

In this article, we will learn more about the current labor situation in Mexico, the obstacles that the new law has encountered along the way, what the impact of a reduction in the workday would be and its potential advantages.

The current labor situation in Mexico

If we review Mexico’s current Federal Labor Law, the workday says that Mexicans must work 48 hours spread over 6 days a week, with 1 day of rest. But the bill presented in 2023 intends to modify this workday to 40 hours per week and give, thus, two mandatory rest days for every 5 days of work per week. This, by the way, without modifying workers’ salaries.

But what is this bill to reduce working hours? Since it was proposed in April 2023, it has still not been approved: the current 65th legislature has not been able to reach a consensus and, moreover, in a context in which President López Obrador proposed (in December 2023) that the discussion be paralyzed with the consequent support of this from the labor parties. Likewise, the country’s businessmen have resisted to this change generating pressure so that it would be postponed and even that it would not become a reality.

The first objectives: vacations

Until 2022, Mexico had a number that was not exactly a source of pride: being among the ten countries that granted the least paid vacations to its workers. This was the case since the enactment of the Federal Labor Law in 1970, with only 6 days of vacation after one year of seniority in the company. But this has changed.

In 2022, the reform to the LFT was approved (specifically articles 76 and 78), which began to be in force as of January 1, 2023, and which incorporated important changes regarding vacations: from that moment on, employees would have 12 days of rest upon reaching one year and one day of work (increasing with the following years), with respect to the 6 they had before. In addition to this, for each year of service, the days of rest are increased by two per completed year until reaching 20 days of vacation; and, from the fifth year, it will be increased by two working days every five years of service. 

Let’s see it in an example: if a worker has 4 years of seniority in a company, according to this change his vacations will have to be 18 days instead of the 12 days he used to get.

This scenario of changes is a good ground for the bill to be approved, thanks to the results achieved and which are now a reality.

What are the advantages of a 40-hour workweek?

Beyond the obstacles that this proposal has presented, the truth is that the reduction of the working day has a series of advantages for employees and their quality of life, and some of them are:

• Health and safety. When people work long hours, fatigue accumulates, which in turn has an impact on the health and safety of employees. For example, according to figures from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Labor Organization (ILO), working 55 hours or more per week increases the risk of having a stroke by 35% and the risk of dying from ischemic heart disease by 17% compared to working 35 to 40 hours per week. This, among other points, is what the reduction of the working day would attack.
• Gender equality. Reducing the workday would allow more women to enter the labor market, as well as give them the opportunity to devote time to caring for their families and homes. This would help to encourage greater labor participation by women to reduce the economic participation gap.
• Stress and Burnout Syndrome. The high energy expenditure involved in work and long hours makes employees more likely to experience stress and burnout syndrome; this, in turn, does not allow for quality productivity. This is what the reduction in working hours is intended to address.
• Increase in employment. There would be an increase in employment because, by reducing the working day, a greater number of workers would be needed to cover the hours in which the working day is reduced.
• Sustainable economy. Among the points in which another benefit is seen, it is the one that points to the sustainable economy, since it is oriented to a long-term economic development, protecting key elements such as social and cultural ones.
• Increased productivity. It could generate an increase in the productivity of workers, for the benefit that this means. However, it should be noted that this does not necessarily translate into higher production.

Conclusion

According to Obdulia Rodriguez Sanchez, president of the Association of Human Resources of the Industry in Tijuana, A.C. (Arhitac), “the workers of the companies that have implemented in advance the reduction of the working day, from 48 to 40 hours a week, have an improvement in their quality of life”, confirming what has been said so far about the reduction of the working day.

In the end, what a reduction in the working day is looking for is that the quality of life of those who give life to work is favored. If this reduction is properly implemented, not only the employees would be favored but also the companies, with openness to change and willingness. And everyone stands to gain.

If you need to know more about it, its implications and impact on your employees and company, be sure to seek advice from the human resources experts at Kilpatrick.