MADRID (Reuters) -Spain’s lower house has shelved a bill that would have shortened the work week by 2-1/2 hours, dealing yet another blow to the fragile Socialist-led minority government which is struggling to pass the reforms it had pledged through a fragmented parliament.
In vote late on Wednesday, opposition lawmakers united with regional Catalan party Junts against the cornerstone legislation championed by Labour Minister Yolanda Diaz and the main trade unions, preventing it from reaching the floor for debate.
However, Diaz vowed to reintroduce the measure lowering the cap on weekly work hours to 37-1/2 from the current 40 – or half an hour less per day – and called Junts’ veto “incomprehensible”.
Business-friendly Junts, which seeks Catalonia’s secession from Spain but sometimes backs the central government, joined the conservative People’s Party and far-right Vox for a 178-170 majority.
Opponents argued that small businesses and farmers would be unable to shoulder the higher costs derived from the policy, leading to job losses and jeopardising the welfare state.
This parliamentary defeat – the latest of several – comes as Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez courts parties to help him pass a budget that is more than two years overdue while he tries to distance himself from corruption scandals that have dogged his third term in office.
In 2023, Sanchez was sworn in as premier by a thin margin with support from pro-Catalan independence parties ERC and Junts after striking deals including a contentious amnesty law for separatists, which sparked outrage and protests among many Spaniards.
While the amnesty passed, the Supreme Court ruled it should not apply to fugitive Junts leader Carles Puigdemont, and Sanchez has failed to secure the party’s support in several key votes.
Corruption scandals, including allegations that key members of his inner circle took kickbacks in exchange for public works contracts, have dented the Socialist Party’s popularity among voters.
Support for the socialists fell to 27.7% in September compared to 32.3% two years ago as far-right party Vox rose to 17.4% from 10.9% in the same period, according to a poll by 40DB for El Pais.
(Reporting by Charlie Devereux and David Latona; Editing by Inti Landauro and Kim Coghill)
