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Government Building

Greece's parliament has approved a contentious work legislation that permits extended-length work shifts, in the face of widespread opposition and countrywide strike actions.

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

Key Elements of the New Work Legislation

Under the freshly approved legislation, yearly overtime is also at one hundred and fifty hours, while the standard 40-hour workweek stays unchanged.

The government insists that the longer workday is elective, only affects the business sector, and can exclusively be applied for up to thirty-seven days each year.

Political Backing and Resistance

The recent vote was supported by lawmakers from the ruling conservative political group, with the centre-left party – now the primary opposition – voting against the bill, while the left-wing group abstained.

Worker organizations have organized multiple protests demanding the law's repeal recently that halted public transport and services to a standstill.

Government Defense and Employee Protections

The Labor Minister supported the legislation, saying the changes align Greek laws with modern employment realities, and accused critics of misleading the citizens.

These regulations will provide workers the choice to accept additional hours with the current company for increased compensation, while guaranteeing they cannot be fired for refusing overtime.

This complies with EU working-time regulations, which cap the mean workweek to forty-eight hours counting extra hours but allow adjustments over 12 months, as stated by the administration.

Critical Viewpoints and Union Reactions

But, critics have charged the government of weakening employee protections and "driving the nation back to a labor middle age." They argue Greek workers currently work longer hours than most EU citizens while earning less and still "struggle to make ends meet."

The public-sector union said flexible working hours in practice mean "the abolition of the standard workday, the disruption of personal time and the legalisation of over-exploitation."

Previous Labor Reforms and Economic Context

Last year, Greece enacted a six-day work schedule for specific industries in a attempt to stimulate the economy.

Recent laws, which started at the start of July, permit workers to work up to forty-eight hours in a week as instead of forty.

EU Work Data and Greek Financial Indicators

• Throughout the EU in 2024, the highest working weeks were recorded in Greece (39.8 hours), then Bulgaria (39.0), Poland and Romania (38.8).
• The lowest work hours in the union is in the Netherlands (32.1), according to EU statistics.
• Starting January 2025, Greece's national minimum wage was nine hundred sixty-eight euros a month, ranking it in the bottom group among European nations.
• Unemployment, 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 5.9%, data from Eurostat show.
• Greece is recovering since its decade-long financial troubles, which ended in 2018, but wages and living standards continue to be among the poorest in the EU.