Lamborghini Implements 4-Day Workweek for Production Workers

As more manufacturing groups re-consider the structure of the workweek for their employees, Italian supercar maker Lamborghini has announced a deal with its unions to implement a four-day workweek for car production workers.

The agreement reached with Lamborghini is part of a broader renegotiation of the framework contract used for workers of the carmaker, a subsidiary of Germany’s Volkswagen, which also includes 500 new jobs, an increase in annual wages, and further labor benefits.

The FIOM and FIM-CISL unions said the agreement is “historical” as it is the first in the automotive industry in Europe to achieve a significant reduction in working hours without cutting wages, but rather increasing them as well as a one-time bonus of $1,082 in the next month. In a statement, FIOM and FIM-CISL unions said:

“Work less and work better, this is the principle that guided this negotiation, and which is part of a comprehensive reasoning.”

Overall, the new workweek will mean production workers work up to 31 fewer days a year. The move comes at a time when many companies and public offices are changing how people work to improve employee well-being and promote company savings after the COVID-19 pandemic and rising costs.

According to a report, companies that have made the change have reported increased work productivity, better job retention and recruitment rates, and fewer sick days. However, other unions in the auto industry could not get companies like Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis to approve the shortened work hours.