Reduction of the working day in Mexico: the strategic guide that companies need to prepare for the change.

The proposal to reduce the weekly working hours of 48 to 40 hours in Mexico This has caused a turning point in the areas of Human Resources, Operations, Finance, and IT. The question that is repeated in all management committees is the same:

What real effects will this change have on daily operations?

There's talk of restructuring shifts, hiring additional staff, and absorbing cost increases. But there's one question that completely redefines the approach:

Do we really know how the current 48-hour window is being used within the operation today?

Without that answer, any calculation is just a theoretical scenario.

In a conversation with Tomás Kachadourian, Director of Business Intelligence at InfoBlock, an angle emerges that few companies are considering, but which is crucial:

“When you start to properly measure what is happening in your operation, you will realize that this reduction in the working day will have very specific impacts on certain positions, in certain areas of your business, and it will not be something that will affect the entire operation as such.”

The key is not in the reduction itself, but in the current use of time.

1. Why reduced working hours do not affect all areas equally.

Contrary to the widespread narrative, Not all positions depend directly on a 48-hour work week. Nor does all staff generate the same level of operational workload.

What truly determines the impact of the reform is:

• how much effective working time exists today,
• how much unproductive time has become normalized,
• and how distributed the work is among people and positions.

Most Mexican organizations do not have this information in an accurate, auditable, or consistent manner.

Therefore, before discussing costs, the first question is: How do we use our time today?

2. Measuring working time in Mexico: what the law allows.

One point that is rarely discussed, but fundamental for companies, is that Mexican legislation Yes, it allows measuring the time during which an employee is actually available for the work for which they were hired..

This enables much deeper analysis of:

• real-time online operation,
• preparation or internal travel times,
• unavoidable unproductive times,
• variations between shifts and positions,
• and the relationship between job tenure vs. productive results.

Practical example in manufacturing.

On a packaging line, measuring how long an employee stays at their station allows for:

• to relate that time to actual production,
• identify variations among collaborators,
• Adjust productivity bonuses based on actual performance.

The result: more precise, fairer schemes that are more aligned with operations, not general bonuses that dilute merit.

3. Overtime in Mexico: a clear opportunity for optimization.

If there is one indicator that reveals the level of operational control of a company, it is the distribution of overtime.

In Mexico, the dynamic is clear:

The 80% of overtime is concentrated in the 20% of people.

And this is no coincidence: employees seek overtime because it increases their income, but it is usually always assigned to the same workers.

Tomás explains it like this:

“When you go to any factory in this country, everyone wants to work overtime. It’s how employees can improve their pay. But it’s usually assigned to very few people.”

In a country like Mexico, where there are:

• double hours,
• triple hours,
• and differentiated costs by type of workday,

the concentration of overtime generates exponential cost overruns that many companies will no longer be able to absorb with the reduction of working hours.

The hidden opportunity.

When overtime is strategically redistributed among people with similar technical skills:

• operating costs decrease,
• The income of more collaborators increases,
• the perception of fairness improves,
• and the operation becomes more stable.

But this is only possible with realistic view of time use, not with spreadsheets or manual records.

4. Working time management: from administrative tool to competitive advantage.

For years, attendance control has been viewed as an administrative task necessary to process payroll.

But the reduction of the working day forces Mexican companies to change their paradigm:

Time is a measurable productive input. And its management determines operating costs.

According to Tomás, the critical point is the quality of the data:

“If you don’t have the correct data from the start, what you’re going to optimize won’t be correct.”

In other words: companies with incorrect data face greater risks when implementing the reform.

For a work time management system to be truly useful, it must:

• be clear and transparent to colleagues and supervisors,
• adapt to different shifts, schedules and processes,
• generate auditable evidence from start to finish,
• and be flexible enough to adapt to operational reality.

5. Reduction of working hours in Mexico: which areas will be most affected?

The interview reveals a key finding:

The impact will not be widespread. It will be localized.

The areas with the greatest exposure will be those where:

• Time spent at the job directly determines production.,
• There is a high demand for overtime,
• the positions require frequent replacement,
• or there are significant variations among collaborators.

Typical examples:

• production lines,
• distribution centers,
• operational areas with rotating shifts,
• services that depend on immediate availability.

6. The most important decision before the reform comes into effect.

It's not about hiring more staff.
It's not about reorganizing shifts.
It's not about anticipating costs.

The most important decision is:

Obtain correct and accurate data on current time usage.

Without that data:

• cost projections will be inaccurate,
• the shift schedules will be poorly designed,
• The overtime calculations will be incorrect.,
• and the risks of non-compliance will increase.

With reliable data, however, companies can:

• identify critical positions,
• model real impacts by area,
• adjust productivity schemes,
• optimize overtime costs,
• and respond to the reform with clarity, not improvisation.

7. Business strategy for 2026: what directors should do this week.

To prepare before the change becomes mandatory, HR, Operations, Finance, and IT directors can start with three actions:

1. Audit the current time recording system.

Does it produce accurate and auditable information?
Does it reflect what actually happens in the operation?

2. Analyze the concentration of overtime.

In most companies, the 80-20 rule is still followed.

3. Identify impact positions.

Not the entire operation will be affected.
The key is knowing where yes.

8. Reducing working hours as an opportunity for transformation.

Reducing to 40 hours is a challenge, yes.
But it is also an unprecedented opportunity to review processes that have not changed in decades:

• how do we measure work,
• how we distribute opportunities such as overtime,
• How do we connect productivity with compensation?,
• how we make decisions based on real data.

Companies that begin accurate time measurement today will be the ones that:

• absorb the impact without malfunctions,
• discover hidden efficiencies,
• and turn labor reform into a competitive advantage.

Learn more about strategic management of working time

At InfoBlock we have helped companies like Cemex, Farmacias del Ahorro, Siemens and Grupo Bachoco to transform time management from simple attendance control to a real competitive advantage.

If you want to understand how your company can prepare for reduced working hours while discovering hidden efficiencies, let's talk.

[Schedule a strategic consultation →]

About the author: This article is based on an interview with Tomás Kachadourian, Director of Business Intelligence at InfoBlock, an expert in optimizing work processes and business productivity in Mexico.