Warning that tourists will pay more for hotels due to reduced working week in Spain

THE government’s plans to cut the working week to 37.5 hours will put up hotel prices, according to a Benidorm-based hotel association.

The Valencian Community Hotel and Tourism Business Association(Hosbec) says it will cause a ‘significant increase’ to costs which will be passed on to visitors through increased prices.

Hosbec president, Fede Fuster, described the move as ‘reckless’, arguing that it will affect the competitiveness of the hotel sector.

READ MORE:

• Spain plans to reduce working week to 37.5 hours: Government says it will ‘modernise’ the country

He said the deal struck between Labour Minister, Yolanda Diez, and trade unions did not involve commerce and that tourist businesses are very labour intensive.

Fuster said: “Minister Diaz forgets that in the Valencian hospitality industry, the working week has already been agreed at 37.5 hours and she has not explained what will happen to businesses operating eight-hour shifts, 24 hours a day.”

He added that the ‘small print’ of the changes will need to be analysed to see how it dove-tails with what employers and unions had agreed to locally.

Hosbec has pledged to work with both the Spanish Confederation of Business Organizations and the Spanish Confederation of Hotels and Tourist Accommodation to ‘minimise’ the impact of the measure.

“It will have to be adapted to the reality of the tourism sector where getting replacement staff is not easy and where it might have to look at mechanising processes due to the lack of workers,” Fuster added.