37,5 Hour Workweek and New Digital Time Tracking: What Should Companies Know?

The Council of Ministers has recently approved a draft law establishing the reduction of the workweek to 37.5 hours and introducing a new mandatory digital time tracking system. This labor reform is expected to have a significant impact on the daily operations of companies, especially in terms of time management, internal control, and regulatory compliance.

Despite the announcement, the regulation has not yet come into effect: the draft must begin its parliamentary process and will only be applicable once it is officially published in the Official State Gazette (BOE). According to the government’s timeline, the new system is expected to be operational before summer 2025.

The text sets out a gradual reduction of working hours without any reduction in salary. Initially, the maximum workweek was set at 38.5 hours (starting in 2024), with a planned reduction to 37.5 hours in 2025. Companies with collective agreements exceeding this annual average will have until December 31, 2025, to adapt.

One of the major new measures is the mandatory implementation of a digital time tracking system, with measures aimed at ensuring the reliability and authenticity of work hour monitoring. This system must:

• Personally record the employee’s clock-in and clock-out times.
• Clearly identify the person clocking in.
• Consider the entire period between clock-in and clock-out as effective working time.
• Allow remote and real-time access by the Labor Inspectorate.

If it is not possible to properly verify the hours worked, it will be presumed that the contract is full-time.

Another notable measure is the obligation to provide, along with the payslip, a monthly summary detailing regular, overtime, and complementary hours. This transparency aims to eliminate undeclared overtime fraud and allow workers to verify whether their working hours are being accurately recorded.

It will also apply to part-time contracts: if the actual working hours cannot be justified, the contract will be considered full-time.

This set of measures represents a structural change in the internal operation of many companies, which will need to review their schedules, reorganize tasks, and adopt reliable technology for time tracking. Additionally, it will be necessary to consider the impact on collective agreements, workforce planning, and the right to digital disconnection.

At CINC Consulting’s Labor Department, we help you adapt your company to the new regulations with confidence:

• Implementation of digital time tracking systems.
• Legal advice on labor law and collective agreements.
• Review and adaptation of working hours to the new regulations.
• Prevention of risks and penalties for non-compliance.

Want to get ahead of the legal change? Contact CINC Consulting and we will support you throughout the entire process.