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Government Building

Greece's legislature has approved a hotly debated work legislation that permits 13-hour working days, despite fierce opposition and nationwide protests.

Government officials asserted the measure will update the country's labor regulations, but critics from the left-wing party labeled it as a "legislative monstrosity."

Key Elements of the New Work Legislation

According to the newly enacted law, annual overtime is limited at 150 hours, while the standard 40-hour week stays unchanged.

Officials insists that the longer shift is optional, solely applies to the business sector, and can only be implemented for up to thirty-seven days each year.

Parliamentary Support and Resistance

The recent ballot was backed by lawmakers from the ruling centre-right party, with the centre-left faction – now the primary opposition – rejecting the bill, while the left-wing party abstained.

Labor unions have organized multiple protests calling for the law's repeal this month that brought transportation and public services to a standstill.

Official Defense and Employee Protections

The Labor Minister defended the legislation, stating the reforms align Greek laws with modern employment realities, and accused critics of misleading the public.

The laws will give employees the option to accept extra work with the current company for increased pay, while guaranteeing they will not be fired for refusing extra hours.

This follows European Union working-time regulations, which limit the average workweek to 48 hours including overtime but allow flexibility over 12 months, as stated by the administration.

Opposition Viewpoints and Union Responses

However, critics have accused the government of weakening workers' rights and "pushing the country back to a labor middle age." They say Greek workers already put in more time than most EU citizens while earning less and still "face financial difficulties."

The public-sector union stated flexible working hours in practice mean "the end of the eight-hour day, the disruption of family and social life and the authorization of over-exploitation."

Previous Workplace Changes and Financial Background

Last year, Greece introduced a six-day work schedule for specific sectors in a attempt to boost the economy.

New legislation, which started at the beginning of July, allow employees to work up to 48 hours in a week as opposed to 40.

European Labor Data and National Financial Metrics

• Throughout the European Union in 2024, the longest average hours were observed in the Hellenic Republic, followed by Bulgaria, Poland (38.9) and Romania (38.8).
• The shortest working week in the union is in the Netherlands (32.1), as per EU statistics.
• As of this year, Greece's national minimum wage stood at nine hundred sixty-eight euros a month, ranking it in the lower tier among European nations.
• Unemployment, which had reached a high at twenty-eight percent during the economic downturn, was eight point one percent in August versus an European mean of five point nine percent, data from the statistical office indicate.
• Greece is recovering since its decade-long financial troubles, which concluded in recent years, but wages and living standards remain among the lowest in the European Union.