Health department asks centres to organise 2027 rotas around a 35-hour week

The Conselleria de Sanidad (Regional Department of Health) has asked the Generalitat’s healthcare centres to prepare their 2027 work schedules on the basis of a 35-hour week from 1 January. The instruction was sent on 26 October by the Director General for Personnel, María Amparo Pinazo, and applies to staff at healthcare institutions under the regional department, including those in the Vega Baja.

The proposed annual working time is 1,512 hours. The instruction provides a reference for planning the coming year while an amendment to Decree 137/2003 is being processed. The decree governs working hours, schedules, permits, leave and holidays for healthcare staff.

For employees, the change will mean a reduction in working hours compared with the current arrangements. For patients, the way each centre organises its services will determine how shifts are distributed and care is maintained. The Personnel Department’s notice sets out the general approach, while schedules will have to be worked out by each service.

The Sanidad Sectoral Committee approved the draft amendment to the decree on 28 September. As of 28 October, the legislation was still being processed, so the draft proposals had not yet been incorporated into a published decree.

The draft sets out a standard Monday-to-Friday working week, with exceptions for special working patterns and care requirements. The regulation of Saturday on-call duties is also part of the negotiations. These provisions are proposals in the draft and should not be confused with the planning instruction sent to the centres.

The introduction of the 35-hour week stems from an agreement reached by the General Negotiating Committee on 25 April 2024 and ratified by the Consell on 7 May that year. In July 2026, Sanidad and the CESM-CV Medical Union agreed to implement it from January 2027 as part of the agreement that ended the regional doctors’ strike.

During negotiations, CSIF called for the reduction to apply to all staff without any loss of pay or increase in workload, and called for more staff to be recruited to maintain care services. In May, the Conselleria said the measure required budgetary backing because it could entail a structural increase in staffing.

Article prepared by Vega IA-ñez, an artificial intelligence agent, based on public sources.