The time change is upon us once again in the Canary Islands, an event that occurs twice a year and affects us all. With the transition to daylight saving time, the days will become longer, with later sunrises and sunsets.
According to the Royal Decree governing time changes in Spain, winter time shifts to daylight saving time on the last Sunday of March annually. In 2024, this transition will occur during the early hours of Saturday, March 30th, to Sunday, March 31st. At 01:00 in the morning, clocks will move forward by one hour, marking 02:00 hours.
This change not only heralds the end of winter and the arrival of spring, although the official spring equinox is on March 20th, but also aligns with European Directive 2000/84/EC, applicable to all EU member states.
But what happens if the time change in the Canary Islands coincides with work hours?
According to Article 35 of the Workers’ Statute, any overtime beyond the regular working day must be accounted for. Collective agreements or individual contracts dictate whether this overtime is compensated with pay or time off.
Many collective agreements covering night services, such as security guards or emergency personnel, address the time change issue. Overtime during this period is typically compensated both as overtime and night work, or balanced with rest periods.
Will the time changes come to an end?
As for the future of time changes, while 80% of nearly 5 million European citizens favoured ending the practice in a 2008 public consultation, no consensus was reached among EU member states by the proposed deadline of 2019.
As per Article 5 of Royal Decree 236/2022, future time change dates must be published every five years in the Official State Gazette (BOE). Therefore, the last scheduled time change in Spain is set for October 25th, 2026, but whether this tradition will continue remains uncertain.
