🔗 Share this article

Government Building

The Greek parliament has given the green light a contentious labor reform that enables extended-length working days, despite widespread resistance and countrywide protests.

Government officials stated the law will revamp Greek labor regulations, but critics from the progressive party described it as a "regulatory disaster."

Key Provisions of the New Work Legislation

According to the freshly approved law, yearly extra hours is also at one hundred and fifty hours, while the standard 40-hour workweek continues as before.

The government emphasizes that the longer shift is elective, solely applies to the private sector, and can only be implemented for up to 37 days annually.

Political Backing and Opposition

The recent vote was backed by MPs from the governing conservative party, with the centre-left faction – now the main resistance – voting against the bill, while the progressive group did not vote.

Labor unions have staged multiple protests calling for the law's repeal recently that brought transportation and services to a standstill.

Government Justification and Employee Safeguards

The Labor Minister supported the legislation, saying the reforms bring in line Greek laws with current labor-market conditions, and accused critics of misinforming the public.

These regulations will provide workers the choice to take on additional hours with the same employer for increased pay, while guaranteeing they will not be fired for declining overtime.

This complies with EU labor rules, which cap the average workweek to forty-eight hours counting overtime but allow adjustments over 12 months, as stated by the administration.

Critical Viewpoints and Labor Reactions

But, opposition parties have charged the government of eroding employee protections and "driving the country back to a medieval work era." They argue Greek workers already work longer hours than most Europeans while receiving lower pay and still "struggle to make ends meet."

A major labor organization stated flexible working hours in reality mean "the abolition of the eight-hour day, the disruption of personal time and the legalisation of over-exploitation."

Recent Labor Reforms and Economic Context

Last year, the country introduced a six-day working week for specific industries in a attempt to boost the economy.

New laws, which started at the start of July, allow employees to labor up to forty-eight hours in a workweek as opposed to 40.

European Work Data and National Economic Indicators

• Throughout the EU in the previous year, the longest working weeks were recorded in Greece (39.8 hours), followed by Bulgaria, Poland (38.9) and Romania.
• The lowest work hours in the bloc is in the Netherlands, as per Eurostat.
• Starting January 2025, Greece's official base pay stood at nine hundred sixty-eight euros a month, placing it in the bottom group among European nations.
• Joblessness, which had peaked at 28% during the financial crisis, was eight point one percent in the summer versus an EU average of 5.9%, data from the statistical office indicate.
• The country is improving since its decade-long financial troubles, which concluded in 2018, but salaries and quality of life continue to be among the poorest in the EU.