Approved in the Senate bill that reduces the working day in Colombia from 48 to 40 hours a week

The bill on working hours in Colombia that left Former Senator Álvaro Uribe Vélez was approved this Friday in the Senate of the Republic. The initiative seeks to reduce weekly working hours from 48 to 40 hours while maintaining the same salary.

As explained The former president at the time, sought with this project that employees can share more leisure time with their family.

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“Plenary Senate approved reduction of working hours without reducing workers’ income. It goes to the Chamber Thanks to the senator speaker Honorio Henríquez and the senators who accompanied this initiative of the Democratic Center “Uribe said on his Twitter account.

The Senator Honorio Henríquez, co-author and speaker of the project, said that this change would begin to be applied gradually in the country if approved.

“Colombia has one of the longest working hours in South America, the average of the OECD countries is only 36.8 hours per week and Colombia has been almost 12 hours above this margin. The trends in human talent suggest that people are more productive to the extent that we are more motivated, ”Henríquez was quoted as saying by RCN Radio.

If the initiative is approved, the weekly working day will be reduced each year, we will go to 45 hours the following year, from the second year of the entry into force of this law it will be up to 42 hours and from the third year the working day would be up to 40 hours a week.

The unions showed their dissatisfaction with the approval in the Senate. “It is irresponsible, without any type of technical support, without thinking about the country and the very high labor costs that it will mean for the sectors still affected by the pandemic like commerce, tourism, gastronomy and orange economy. This goes against the signs of recovery in the economy. It is an irresponsibility of the Senate ”, said Jaime Alberto Cabal, president of Fenalco.

On his side, Bruce Mac Master, president of Andi, reacted on his Twitter account: “The change in working hours goes in the totally opposite direction to what it should. Job creation is becoming more expensive, competitiveness is being affected. Unfortunately that was not taken into account in the Senate today. The responsibility we have is great”.

“This is essential to advance in the correction of social imbalances. With this initiative, Colombian workers will be able to dedicate more time to their family, to rest, to cultivate intellectually, but without their remuneration being affected.. By reducing the working day without affecting the family economy of our workers, we harmonize Colombian legislation with everything provided in Agreement 47 and recommendation 116 of the International Labor Organization “, commented the Senator Ruby Chagüi.

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Now the bill will go to the House of Representatives, so that it can be studied and approved in the two remaining debates, so that it finally ends in presidential sanction.