Canary Islands: Over 29,000 unpaid overtime hours recorded weekly

An analysis by the labor union Comisiones Obreras (CCOO), based on 2025 Labor Force Survey (EPA) data, estimates that over 29,000 unpaid overtime hours are performed weekly in the Canary Islands.

This unpaid labor represents an estimated weekly cost saving of approximately 600,000 euros for companies, calculated at an average labor cost of 20.65 euros per hour. The report notes that the second quarter of 2025 saw a significant spike, with over 47,600 unpaid hours recorded in a single reference week, accounting for 41% of the total analyzed.

CCOO advises caution regarding the statistical precision of these figures, noting that the phenomenon affects roughly 2% of the salaried population in the archipelago and that the EPA data relies on specific quarterly reference weeks rather than a full annual sample.