🔗 Share this article

Government Building

Greece's legislature has given the green light a hotly debated labor reform that authorizes extended-length working days, in the face of fierce opposition and nationwide strike actions.

The administration asserted the measure will revamp Greek labor regulations, but critics from the progressive faction described it as a "harmful law."

Key Provisions of the Recently Passed Work Legislation

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

Officials maintains that the longer workday is voluntary, solely affects the business sector, and can only be used for up to 37 days each year.

Political Support and Opposition

The recent ballot was backed by MPs from the governing conservative political group, with the centre-left party – currently the main opposition – voting against the legislation, while the progressive party abstained.

Labor unions have organized two general strikes calling for the law's repeal this month that halted public transport and public services to a stop.

Official Justification and Worker Protections

A senior official defended the bill, stating the reforms align national legislation with modern labor-market conditions, and alleged critics of misinforming the public.

These regulations will give employees the option to take on extra work with the current company for 40% higher pay, while guaranteeing they cannot be fired for declining overtime.

The measure follows EU labor regulations, which cap the average week to 48 hours counting overtime but permit flexibility over 12 months, as stated by the administration.

Opposition Perspectives and Labor Reactions

However, critics have charged the government of weakening workers' rights and "pushing the country back to a labor middle age." They argue local workers already work longer hours than the majority of Europeans while earning less 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 family and social life and the authorization of over-exploitation."

Previous Labor Changes and Financial Context

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

Recent laws, which came into effect at the beginning of July, permit employees to work up to forty-eight hours in a week as instead of forty.

EU Work Statistics and Greek Economic Indicators

• Across the European Union in 2024, the highest working weeks were observed in Greece (39.8 hours), then Bulgaria (39.0), Poland (38.9) and Romania.
• The lowest work hours in the union is in the Netherlands, as per Eurostat.
• As of this year, the nation's national minimum wage was nine hundred sixty-eight euros a month, ranking it in the bottom group among European nations.
• Joblessness, which had reached a high at 28% during the financial crisis, was 8.1% in the summer versus an EU average of 5.9%, figures from Eurostat show.
• The country is improving since its decade-long financial troubles, which concluded in recent years, but salaries and quality of life remain among the lowest in the European Union.