Spain moves to end siestas in an attempt to raise productivity

For employees in America, Spanish siestas probably sound like a great idea. Across the pond, however, Spain might soon be putting an end to the traditional three-hour midday lunch break due to low levels of productivity in comparison to their siesta-less European neighbors, The Independent reports.

Spanish workers typically begin at 10 a.m. and work through 2 p.m. They then leave for up to three hours before returning to work through 8 p.m. Siestas originally began as a way for farmers to avoid brutal midday temperatures, although even despite putting in more hours of work than, say, Germans, Spanish workers average lower levels of productivity with siestas built into their workdays.

The Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has headed the movement to cut the workday by two hours and end siestas, saying, "I will find a consensus to make sure the working day ends at 6 p.m." Rajoy has also expressed a desire to put Spain back on Greenwich Mean Time, with London, instead of one hour ahead like Eastern European countries.

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