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Government Building

Greece's parliament has approved a contentious work legislation that enables extended-length work shifts, despite fierce resistance and countrywide protests.

The administration asserted the measure will update the country's labor regulations, but critics from the progressive party labeled it as a "harmful law."

Main Provisions of the Recently Passed Labor Law

According to the newly enacted law, yearly overtime is also at 150 hours, while the regular forty-hour week stays unchanged.

The government emphasizes that the extended shift is optional, only applies to the private sector, and can exclusively be used for up to 37 days annually.

Parliamentary Backing and Opposition

Thursday's vote was supported by lawmakers from the ruling centre-right political group, with the centre-left faction – now the main opposition – voting against the bill, while the progressive party abstained.

Labor unions have organized two general strikes demanding the bill's withdrawal this month that halted public transport and public services to a stop.

Official Defense and Employee Protections

A senior official defended the legislation, stating the reforms align Greek legislation with current employment conditions, and alleged critics of misinforming the public.

These regulations will provide workers the choice to take on additional hours with the current company for 40% higher compensation, while guaranteeing they will not be fired for refusing extra hours.

The measure complies with European Union working-time rules, which limit the mean workweek to 48 hours including overtime but permit flexibility over a year, as stated by the administration.

Critical Viewpoints and Labor Reactions

However, opposition parties have accused the administration of weakening workers' rights and "driving the nation back to a labor middle age." They say Greek employees currently work longer hours than the majority of EU citizens while earning less and still "struggle to make ends meet."

The public-sector union stated flexible working hours in practice mean "the abolition of the standard workday, the destruction of family and social life and the authorization of over-exploitation."

Previous Labor Changes and Economic Background

In 2024, the country introduced a six-day working week for specific industries in a bid to boost economic growth.

New legislation, which started at the beginning of the summer, permit workers to work up to 48 hours in a workweek as opposed to forty.

EU Work Data and National Financial Metrics

• Across the EU in the previous year, the highest working weeks were observed in the Hellenic Republic, then Bulgaria (39.0), Poland and Romania.
• The lowest working week in the union is in the Netherlands, according to Eurostat.
• Starting January 2025, Greece's national base pay stood at €968 a month, placing it in the lower tier among EU countries.
• Unemployment, which had peaked at twenty-eight percent during the economic downturn, was 8.1% in August compared with an EU average of 5.9%, figures from Eurostat show.
• The country is recovering since its prolonged debt crisis, which concluded in 2018, but wages and living standards continue to be among the poorest in the EU.