Recently, working schedules in Spain have been discussed. In fact, there are some movements fighting for changing time management in the whole country, like the ARHOE, Asociación para la Racionalización de los Horarios Españoles, association for the streamlining of Spanish schedules.

You would probably agree that Spanish schedules are a bit «special» and that we have a later schedule than the rest of the world. But it is not for a lack of punctuality!

Some actual facts to start with:

1. Working days in Spain are longer and have extremely long lunch breaks.
2. Spanish general schedule is one or two hours later than other countries’.

Typical Spanish hours for a store. BBC Magazine. «The end of the Spanish siesta?»

Why is the work day different?

On the one hand, it is true that we work more than nine hours a day in Spain. However, we have not yet realized that working longer does not mean working more efficiently. Actually, it can be counterproductive.

Contributing to the long day is a looong lunch break. If you have already been to Spain, you will have noticed that it’s not because we like taking a nap! When we are on holiday, we do like having a rest. But during work periods many people don’t take a nap or, if they do, it is a really short one. Also, it is common to have something to eat in the mid-morning, so we are not usually hungry until lunch, hehe.

Another important factor is the food itself, because many people cook daily. We also like having a relaxing lunch at home, while talking to family, friends, or workmates. In fact, eating together is a key factor of our social customs. We’ll tell you about that in another post!

The biggest problem that comes from this schedule difference is that our «personal life» starts really late. We leave work in the evening and don’t have enough time for housework, hobbies, or for our family and friends. That’s why we do many things in the late evening. Even the prime-time TV starts at 10 p.m.!

Why do Spaniards start and finish everything so late?!

To put it simply, because we live within the sun. However, the sun and the clock don’t work in a synchronizing manner.

In 1942, Spanish dictator Francisco Franco, moved the clocks forward as a gesture of allegiance to Hitler, changing our natural time zone, which should be the same as the one in Portugal, the UK, and Ireland.

For this reason, in Spain the sun rises «later», we get up later, and start work later, according to clocks, but not according to our biological clock. For instance, we have lunch at around 2 p.m., when the sun reaches its highest point in the sky (it should be 12:30 p.m., approximately). It is not so late, isn’t it? 😉

BBC Magazine. «The end of the Spanish siesta?»

To sum up, we aren’t so crazy! 🙂 And besides, several measures are currently being discussed to get back to the time zone we belong to. The most important thing for you, though, is that you don’t have to worry when you are in Spain: you can follow the natural time zone and live like us or keep your own time zone, since many restaurants, businesses and shops have long opening hours so that you can enjoy your life in Spain without worrying about these differences.

sources:

• Blog post of ¿escuela habla!: «Los horarios españoles».
• BBC News: «The End Of The Spanish Siesta?».

related schedules:

• Los horarios españoles.