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The claim: Spain legalized marijuana and a 32-hour workweek
A viral screenshot widely shared on Facebook claims that Spain has legalized cannabis and four-day labor laws.
“Spain legalized weeds and started 32 hour work weeks. The ‘American dream’ now is to move out of the country lol,” reads a screenshot of a tweet with over 489,000 likes shared to Facebook. The March 22 Facebook post has more than 2,000 shares and 27,000 comments.
USA TODAY contacted the Twitter user for comment. The Facebook page does not have a way to be contacted.
The same screenshot has since gone viral on various sites, including Americasbestpics.com, iFunny and Reddit.
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Spain does not legalize weeds
Maldita.es, a non-profit organization based in Spain that focuses on disinformation, has not found any new legislation on the legalization of marijuana in Spain in the electronic register of the Official Gazette.
According to Maldita, Article 368 of the Spanish penal code states that individuals will be ‘punished’ because they ‘act of cultivation, manufacture, trade or in any other way the illegal use of toxic substances, narcotics or psychotropic substances, or possess them for such purposes. ”
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While it is illegal to sell marijuana in Spain, it is legal to smoke it for personal use in the space of your own home or on private property, according to SpainWeedGuide, a cannabis source in Spain.
If an individual is caught with marijuana in a public space, it is considered a criminal offense that results in fines or jail time.
Maldita notes that although the Spanish government has accepted a recommendation from an expert from the World Health Organization to eliminate ‘cannabis and cannabis resin from list IV of the 1961 Convention on Narcotic Drugs in 1961’, this does not mean that in Spain or the European Union.
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Suggested pilot program for 32-hour workweeks
Spain does not have 32-hour working weeks, but there is a proposed pilot program recently set up by Más Pais, the small left-wing political party of Spain, which advocates the idea.
Details of the pilot program are still being discussed with the government, but according to The Guardian, Más Pais has proposed a three-year $ 59.5 million project that will allow businesses to test the four-day work week.
Under the proposal, the government will cover the expenses of the program for the first year 100%, 50% for the second year and 33% for the following year. Héctor Tejero of Más País said that about 200 companies with a total of 3,000 to 6,000 workers could participate in the program, reports The Guardian.
Maldita stresses that the pilot program has not been approved nationwide in Spain, and the Ministry of Labor and Social Economy website says that ‘the maximum duration of a normal working day will be 40 hours per week.’
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Our rating: false
The claim that Spain legalized marijuana and 32-hour workweeks is FALSE, based on our research. There are no reports on the country legalizing cannabis. The Spanish government has reportedly agreed to a pilot program that tests 32-hour working weeks, but a typical working week in Spain nationwide is 40 hours.
Our sources for fact checking:
- Maldita, March 23, “No, Spain did not ‘legalize weeds and start 32-hour working weeks'”
- Spain Official Gazette, visit on 25 March, legislative search
- Official Gazette of Spain, 24 November 1995, Spanish Penal Code, Article 368
- SpainWeedGuide, visits on March 25 “Cannabis rules in Spain: a complete guide”
- The Guardian, March 15, “Spain begins four-day working day trial
- Spain Ministry of Labor and Social Economy, visit on 25 March, Work Guide: Salary and working hours
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