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Government Building

The Greek legislature has given the green light a disputed labor reform that authorizes 13-hour work shifts, despite strong opposition and nationwide protests.

Government officials claimed the measure will update the country's labor regulations, but critics from the left-wing party described it as a "harmful law."

Main Provisions of the New Work Legislation

According to the newly enacted legislation, annual overtime is limited at 150 hours, while the regular 40-hour week continues as before.

The government maintains that the extended shift is voluntary, only applies to the private sector, and can only be applied for up to 37 days annually.

Parliamentary Support and Resistance

Thursday's vote was backed by MPs from the ruling conservative party, with the moderate party – now the main opposition – voting against the legislation, while the left-wing party abstained.

Worker organizations have organized multiple protests calling for the bill's withdrawal recently that halted transportation and public services to a standstill.

Official Defense and Worker Safeguards

The Labor Minister supported the legislation, claiming the changes bring in line national legislation with current labor-market realities, and accused opposition leaders of misinforming the public.

These regulations will provide employees the option to take on extra work with the same employer for increased compensation, while ensuring they will not be fired for declining extra hours.

This follows EU labor regulations, which cap the mean workweek to 48 hours including extra hours but allow adjustments over a year, according to the government.

Opposition Viewpoints and Labor Reactions

However, critics have charged the administration of weakening workers' rights and "pushing the country back to a medieval work era." They say Greek employees currently put in more time than the majority of EU citizens while receiving lower pay and still "struggle to make ends meet."

A major labor organization stated flexible working hours in practice mean "the abolition of the standard workday, the destruction of personal time and the authorization of excessive labor."

Previous Workplace Changes and Financial Background

In 2024, Greece introduced a six-day working week for certain sectors in a bid to stimulate the economy.

New laws, which started at the start of the summer, permit workers to labor up to forty-eight hours in a workweek as instead of forty.

European Work Data and Greek Financial Indicators

• Throughout the EU in 2024, the highest average hours were observed in the Hellenic Republic, then Bulgaria (39.0), Poland (38.9) and Romania (38.8).
• The lowest working week in the union is in the Netherlands, according to EU statistics.
• Starting this year, Greece's national base pay stood at €968 a month, placing it in the lower tier among EU countries.
• Joblessness, which had reached a high at twenty-eight percent during the economic downturn, was eight point one percent in August compared with an European mean of five point nine percent, data from the statistical office show.
• The country is recovering since its prolonged debt crisis, which concluded in recent years, but wages and quality of life remain among the poorest in the European Union.