Reduction of working week to 37.5 hours will benefit more than two million employees in Andalucía

The delegate of the Spanish government in Andalucía, Pedro Fernández, has stated that some two million workers will benefit from the reduction of the working week to 37.5 hours in Spain. Fernández highlighted the government's commitment to building "a heritage of labour rights, with the objective of full, stable, quality employment with decent pay".

According to the delegate, the government has "made progress in the protection of the working class, responding to fair demands". The objective "has not been abandoned since June 2018, when it set out on the path".

To achieve this, the government has been engaging in "social dialogue, working hand in hand with the unions". The collaboration has facilitated other improvements such as the increase of over 60% of the minimum wage (SMI) to adapt it to the cost of living, placing it at 1,184 euros compared to 736 just seven years ago.

The revaluation of pensions, "also promoted and committed to by this government, has meant safeguarding the purchasing power of nearly one and a half million Andalusian pensioners, with an increase of almost 5% in the last year and more than 40% compared to 2018".

In addition, Fernández commemorated other measures in favour of the working class such as "the alignment of domestic workers' rights with those of other workers to allow access to unemployment benefits, the recognition of job-related illnesses specific to hotel housekeepers and the 2021 regulation of the working conditions of so-called riders".

"These are just a few examples that show that the Spanish government has, among its main objectives, the strengthening and extension of the social shield, as well as the defence and improvement of the working conditions of our workers, which is now being extended again with the reduction of the working day, giving the working class the right to leisure," the delegate said.

"The dignity of people is not earned by overtime at work, but by upgrading the quality of life and recognising their rights," said Fernández.