Currently the General Labor Law establishes that a person can work up to 48 hours a week, with a maximum of eight hours a day for six days a week.
However, recently an initiative was presented in the Chamber of Deputies that could change this reality for the workers of Mexico.
Legislators were the ones who proposed modifications to the article 123 of the Federal Labor Law (LFT) so that the working day does not exceed 40 hours per week and that they enjoy at least two days off.
Although the path for the entry into force of this law is still uncertain (the proposal was stopped in commissions), it has already aroused various expectations.
The 8-hour day that is currently established in the LFT was not always undesirable, in fact, this limit of hours was, in large part, the result of the struggle and defense of the rights of workers, not only of Mexico but also of the world.
It is enough to remember that with the beginning of the Industrial Revolution the world took a turn of the screw, daily life was transformed with the factories and implied that the working hours were extended reaching up to 18 hours in a row.
This pace of life turned out to be unsustainable for the workers, the discontent over their situation triggered dozens of protests and riots, which took place in different parts of the world, for example, in Britain and USA where demonstrations were registered in which fair working conditions were demanded.
The events that partly marked various achievements in terms of labor rights (especially in the area of working hours) were the strikes carried out by American workers in 1886.
These antecedents meant a before and after for working life in some countries and prompted the establishment of the 8-hour working day, which is based on the ideas of robert owena man of British origin who, from 1810, proposed dividing the day into 8 hours of work, 8 hours of recreation and 8 hours of rest.
Although the 8-hour limit was set in the Constitution of 1917 —and on that basis later modifications made in later years (1931 and 1970) were established— the idea of establishing said period was planted by crucial figures of the pre-revolutionary context.
It’s about the brothers Flowers Magon, who promoted anarchism in the country. In fact, Ricardo Flores Magon founded the Mexican Liberal Party through which the bases of many of the labor rights that are maintained in the Carta Magana were taken, including the 8-hour day.
In addition to this measure, the Mexican Liberal Party also promoted mandatory Sunday rest, the minimum wage, as well as the payment of compensation.
Meanwhile, more than 100 years after the establishment of the Labor Law in Mexico, data from the National Occupation and Employment Survey (ENOE) presented in 2022 revealed that 8 million people in the country work more than 56 hours per week, which means that it exceeds the maximum established in current legislation by eight hours.
It should be noted that the World Health Organization has warned of the risks involved in long hours, since a study found that working more than 55 hours a week increases the risk of death from heart disease and stroke.
