Mexico will advance to a 40 hour work day and with this, it will become the third economy in Latin America with the shortest work week, matching Ecuador and Chile. The reduction in the country will be gradual and will begin on January 1, 2027, as proposed by the Government.
The government-driven reform was sent to the Senate in December and proposes a gradual reduction in the working day to reach a limit of 40 hours in 2030. The modifications to the Constitution and the Federal Labor Lawor (LFT) could be debated next week in the Upper House, it is one of the priority changes in the Congress of the Union.
In the region, the 48-hour work week remains the norm. According to the International Labor Organization (ILO), there are currently only eight countries that have a work week below that standard, of which five have reduced their working time to 44 hours (Dominican Republic, Brazil, Venezuela, El Salvador and Honduras) and one more, Colombiawith a limit of 42 hours.
By 2005, half of the economies in the world, mainly in Europe, already had a 40 hour work dayeven countries like France (35 hours), Ireland (39 hours) and Australia (38 hours) have a lower standard.
“During the mid-2010s, accelerated economic, social and environmental transformations reopened the debate on working time“, indicates the report Reduction of working hours: Global evolution and challenges for Latin America of the ILO.
In Latin Americathe pioneer country in the 40-hour day is Ecuadorsince 1997 established this scheme. Chili It did so in 2023 with a gradual transition that will conclude in 2028, although it already had a legal limit of 45 hours per week.
Regulation of working time in Latam.
“A reform of this magnitude aligns us with first world economies. Large companies in their codes of ethics have compliance with workers’ rights, the promotion of well-being and work-life balanceany responsible investment company will not put any type of barrier, it is a reality of the 20 main economies in the world, Mexico has to align itself,” says Francisco Martínez Domene, CEO of Adecco México and president of the Mexican Association of Human Capital Companies (AMECH).
Most of the countries that make up the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) have a standard 40 hours per week.
Historically, Mexico has had a lag in regulation around rest and work time. In the case of vacations, it took just over 50 years for it to be modified, the list of mandatory rest days is about to add up to 40 years without being adjusted, and for the working day, it took almost 110 years for it to move towards a reduction.
“Mexico has a social debt in working conditions. With the holidays, everyone was scandalized, but we have not reformed them since the promulgation of the Federal Labor Law. And although we have seen a lot in labor reforms, in terms of working conditions we have not really seen many updates,” says Marité Villanueva, labor lawyer and Human Resources advisor.
For the specialist, the reduction of working hours in Mexico It is a way to update it to the new realities of the world of work. “Everything has advanced and our legislation has not been updated at the same time. We are in a time with different modalities, more technology and many things that, at the time the current day was established, were not envisioned.”
Long days, high cost
From the perspective of Ivonne Borden, founder of the firm Agando Valor, the country has been confused “being busy with being productive”this has meant that for many years, both individually and collectively, there was no attempt to reduce working time.
According to an ILO investigation, working hours are the most lethal risk factoraround 4 out of every 10 work-related deaths are linked to work time.
The work addictionbelieves Ivonne Borden, has normalized excessive working hours. “I have to sacrifice my time, my personal life, my physical and psychological health, but that has cost the lives of many people.”
Fracisco Martínez Domene points out that the reduction of working hours has “enormous potential for improve the quality of life of millions of workersand it is a historic opportunity to modernize the labor market.”
