Barcelona City Council has reached a landmark preliminary agreement with municipal unions to introduce a 35-hour workweek for most staff.
The deal, concluded after 11 months of intense negotiations, also includes a significant salary increase and new measures to improve work-life balance for thousands of employees.
Key Details of the Barcelona City Council Agreement
The agreement, set to be implemented from 2026 pending final union ratification, represents a major shift in public sector working conditions.
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Consequently, the standard working week will be reduced from 37.5 to 35 hours for personnel with common schedules, eliminating mandatory afternoon shifts. Furthermore, the deal establishes a digital disconnection protocol and introduces an annual €2,500 aid for staff reducing hours to care for children aged 6 to 13.
For essential services with special schedules, such as Social Services, Citizen Service Offices, or Housing departments, the hourly reduction will be smaller. However, these employees will receive compensatory salary adjustments. The historic agreement also maintains existing summer and Christmas hour reductions while introducing specific improvements for various municipal groups.
Salary Increases and Career Progression
In addition to the reduced hours, the Barcelona City Council deal includes a global salary increase of 11.5% over the next four years. Moreover, it introduces a horizontal professional career path for all staff, maintains supplements for temporary incapacity, and improves certain personal and productivity bonuses.
The pending convention also creates new positions in nursery schools through a second work activity scheme. Additionally, it offers 400 internal promotion spots for current employees to advance their careers. The agreement will create full-time permanent positions at the Municipal Institute of Social Services and facilitate the transition of interim staff at the Municipal Education Institute to permanent roles.
This development follows other significant local government actions, such as the ongoing efforts to tackle the city’s housing crisis. The council’s focus on internal staffing stability, therefore, aligns with broader municipal priorities.
Union Support and Implementation Timeline
The preliminary agreement has the backing of UGT, CCOO, and CSIF, the unions that led the negotiations. According to Pablo Romero, general secretary of UGT at the City Council, the outcome highlights the crucial role of collective bargaining in enhancing municipal workers’ conditions.
The deal also advances the functionalization of staff at the Library Consortium, granting greater job stability. This move towards securing permanent positions for public workers mirrors trends seen in other sectors, where the city is balancing modernization with employee welfare.
According to the original report from El Periódico, the final negotiating session lasted over 24 hours, concluding more than 50 working meetings. The Barcelona City Council and its unions now move to the ratification phase, with implementation scheduled for the coming year.
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