Workweek Reduction: The Road To 2030

Mexico has enacted a major reform to its Federal Labour Law introducing a phased reduction of the working week to 40 hours, alongside changes to overtime limits and the introduction of mandatory electronic timekeeping. The reforms will be implemented gradually through to 2030 and will have significant implications for employers’ working time and compliance obligations.

Workweek Reduction: The Road to 2030

On 1 May 2026, a significant reform to the Federal Labour Law was enacted. The legislation sets out a gradual transition to a 40-hour working week, accompanied by revised overtime rules and new requirements for electronic recording of working time. Employers will need to begin preparing for phased implementation over the coming years, with key obligations taking effect from 2027.

Key changes to the working week

The reform to the Federal Labour Law includes the following:

• The workweek may be distributed by mutual agreement between employers and employees, provided that statutory daily and weekly limits are complied with.
• The maximum ordinary working week will be 40 hours, regardless of whether it is daytime, nighttime, or mixed shift.
• This 40-hour work week limit will be introduced gradually: 46 hours in 2027, 44 hours in 2028, 42 hours in 2029, and 40 hours in 2030.
• Notwithstanding the weekly cap, the maximum length of a standard daily shift remain unchanged: 8 hours for daytime shifts, 7 hours for nighttime shifts, and 7.5 hours for mixed shifts. These limits apply to regular working hours only.
• In addition, a separate overall daily limit applies: the combined total of regular and overtime hours may not exceed 12 hours per day. This acts as an absolute cap on total daily working time.
• The right to one weekly rest day remains unchanged.

Overtime rules

Overtime arrangements are also being restructured. Employees may work up to 12 hours of overtime per week, which may be distributed across a maximum of four hours per day, up to four days per week. These hours will be paid at double the regular rate (i.e. an additional 100% on top of the regular rate). This marks a change from the current framework, which allows up to three hours per day, no more than three times per week.

In addition, employees may work up to a further four overtime hours per week, paid at triple the regular rate (i.e. an additional 200% on top of the regular rate). Accordingly, total overtime may not exceed 16 hours per week.

The limits applicable to double-rate overtime will be introduced gradually, as follows:

Electronic working time records

Another key aspect of the reform is the introduction of mandatory electronic working time records. Employers will be required to maintain an electronic record of each employee’s working day, including start and end times, and to make these available to the authorities upon request.

The Ministry of Labour is expected to issue specific regulations regarding the scope and potential exceptions to this requirement before 1 January 2027.

Electronic records will constitute full legal evidence, provided they are agreed upon by both the employee and the employer.

Failure to comply with these obligations may result in fines ranging from 250 to 5,000 times the Unit of Measurement and Update (UMA), which at time of writing corresponds to MXN $29,327.50 (approximately USD $1,689.08) up to MXN $586,550.00 (approximately USD $33,781.60). This obligation will become effective on January 2027.

As a summary, below is a roadmap toward compliance with the workday reduction:

The route to 2030 - Reduction of the workweek

Takeaway for employers

In light of these reforms, employers will need to take a proactive approach to compliance. In particular, organisations should:

• Review and adjust working time arrangements in anticipation of the phased reduction in the working week.
• Update payroll and time-tracking systems to reflect new overtime structures and limits.
• Prepare for the implementation of electronic timekeeping system ahead of 1 January 2027, and once the specific regulations mentioned above have been issued.
• Review individual employment agreements, collective bargaining agreements, internal work regulations and policies, and other documents related to working hours to determine whether updates are required.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.