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Government Building

Greece's legislature has ratified a contentious work legislation that authorizes 13-hour work shifts, in the face of strong opposition and countrywide strike actions.

The administration claimed the law will revamp the country's work laws, but opposition figures from the left-wing faction labeled it as a "regulatory disaster."

Main Elements of the New Labor Law

According to the newly enacted legislation, yearly overtime is limited at one hundred and fifty hours, while the regular forty-hour workweek stays unchanged.

Officials insists that the extended workday is elective, solely applies to the private sector, and can exclusively be applied for up to thirty-seven days annually.

Political Support and Resistance

The recent vote was backed by lawmakers from the ruling conservative political group, with the moderate faction – currently the main opposition – rejecting the legislation, while the left-wing party abstained.

Worker organizations have staged two general strikes demanding the bill's withdrawal recently that halted transportation and services to a standstill.

Official Defense and Worker Protections

The Labor Minister supported the bill, claiming the reforms align Greek laws with modern labor-market conditions, and alleged opposition leaders of misleading the public.

These regulations will give employees the choice to accept extra work with the current company for 40% higher compensation, while ensuring they cannot be fired for refusing overtime.

This complies with European Union working-time regulations, which limit the average workweek to forty-eight hours including overtime but allow adjustments over 12 months, as stated by the government.

Critical Perspectives and Union Reactions

However, opposition parties have charged the government of eroding employee protections and "driving the nation back to a labor middle age." They argue Greek workers already put in more time than most Europeans while receiving lower pay and still "face financial difficulties."

A major labor organization said flexible working hours in reality mean "the abolition of the standard workday, the disruption of personal time and the authorization of excessive labor."

Previous Labor Changes and Financial Context

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

New legislation, which came into effect at the beginning of July, permit workers to labor up to forty-eight hours in a workweek as opposed to forty.

European Labor Data and Greek Economic Indicators

• Throughout the European Union in 2024, the longest average hours were observed in Greece (39.8 hours), followed by Bulgaria, Poland (38.9) and Romania (38.8).
• The shortest work hours in the bloc is in the Netherlands, as per Eurostat.
• As of January 2025, Greece's official base pay was nine hundred sixty-eight euros a month, placing it in the bottom group among EU countries.
• Unemployment, which had peaked at 28% during the financial crisis, was 8.1% in the summer versus an EU average of 5.9%, data from the statistical office show.
• The country is improving since its prolonged debt crisis, which concluded in recent years, but wages and living standards continue to be among the poorest in the European Union.