On April 25, 2023, the Commission of Constitutional Matters of the Chamber of Representatives approved and sent to the Plenary Session of said Chamber, for discussion and approval, if applicable, the "Ruling on the initiatives with draft decree proposing the amendment of Article 123 of the Political Constitution of the United Mexican States, regarding rest days".
The draft decree is justified on the impact that workers have on their health, family cohesion and social relations, as a result of working hours and the lack of rest days, as well as the recommendations issued by the International Labor Organization (ILO).
The initiatives analyzed by the Commission included the proposal to reduce the daily workday from 8 to 7 hours, as well as amendments to Section B of Article 123 of the Constitution (which applies to workers at the service of the State); however, in the opinion approved by the Commission it was proposed to amend only the text of Article 123 Section A of the Political Constitution of the United Mexican States, in order to reduce the working days to five, increase the rest days to two, in other words, for five days of work there would be two days of rest, which implies that the weekly workday would be of 40 hours.
The legislative process will have a recess, since the first ordinary period of sessions has concluded and will continue in the second ordinary period of sessions that will begin in September 2023, at which time the draft Decree may be considered for voting.
It is unlikely that the draft decree will be considered for a special session, since in order to summon a special session, it must be done by two-thirds of the Permanent Commission of the Congress or by the President of the Republic.
This is a Constitutional reform, so its approval requires the vote of two thirds of the legislators, both in the Chamber of Deputies and subsequently in the Senate, and the reform must be approved by the majority of the Local Congresses.
The reform would not only impact work centers that work six days and one rest day, since according to the Federal Labor Law there are workplaces that work 5 days with 2 rest days, but the sixth day is divided into 5 days to work 9.5 hours a day from Monday to Friday and, with the proposed reform, those work centers would have to reduce the workday to 8 hours a day.
However, it is worth reviewing how the working week is regulated in Latin American countries:
| Countries | Maximum weekly working hours |
|---|---|
| Argentina, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Panamá, Perú y Uruguay | 48 |
| Guatemala, Honduras, Cuba, República Dominicana, Brasil y Venezuela | 44 |
| Ecuador | 40 |
En Europa:
| Countries | Maximum weekly working hours |
|---|---|
| Holanda | 48 |
| España, Bélgica, Italia, Polonia y Suecia | 40 |
| Dinamarca | 37 |
| Francia, Suiza y Alemania | 35 |
There is a legislative tendency to reduce the working week, as in the case of Chile, where in March this year they reduced the working week from 45 to 44 hours and will reduce it to 40 hours in 2028. There are even more aggressive plans, such as in England, where in June 2022, 71 companies changed to a four-day workday as part of a pilot program. Colombia will gradually reduce the number of working hours per week, starting at 47 in 2023 and ending at 42 in 2026.
During this waiting period it is possible that, in view of the stances of the sectors involved, the draft decree will have a new analysis, since it implies a high impact on the life of the Companies, both economic and operational, generating the challenge of modifying the ways of working to comply with the reform, and in turn, guarantee the efficiency of their operation.
Thus, Mexico will experience a debate in which political interests in the run-up to the presidential elections will put pressure on Congress and the State legislatures to approve the reform, disregarding the fact that it entails a high cost and loss of competitiveness in the face of possible investments. Although it is difficult to anticipate a scenario, it is possible that the party in power will be satisfied with the proposed initiative and the electoral and media projection it gives it, without the detriment to labor competitiveness that approving the reduction of the workweek would represent.
