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Government Building

Greece's legislature has given the green light a contentious work legislation that enables 13-hour work shifts, in the face of fierce opposition and countrywide protests.

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

Key Provisions of the Recently Passed Labor Law

Under the freshly approved legislation, yearly extra hours is limited at one hundred and fifty hours, while the regular forty-hour week stays unchanged.

The government emphasizes that the longer shift is optional, only affects the business sector, and can exclusively be implemented for up to 37 days each year.

Parliamentary Backing and Opposition

Thursday's ballot was supported by MPs from the ruling conservative party, with the moderate faction – currently the primary opposition – voting against the bill, while the progressive group abstained.

Worker organizations have staged multiple protests demanding the bill's withdrawal this month that halted transportation and services to a stop.

Official Defense and Worker Protections

A senior official defended the bill, saying the changes bring in line Greek laws with current labor-market realities, and accused opposition leaders of misinforming the citizens.

The laws will give employees the choice to accept extra work with the current company for 40% higher pay, while guaranteeing they cannot be fired for refusing extra hours.

The measure complies with EU working-time rules, which cap the average workweek to 48 hours counting extra hours but permit adjustments over a year, according to the government.

Opposition Viewpoints and Union Responses

However, critics have accused the administration of weakening workers' rights and "driving the country back to a labor middle age." They say Greek workers already work longer hours than the majority of Europeans while earning less and still "struggle to make ends meet."

The public-sector union said variable shifts in practice mean "the end of the eight-hour day, the disruption of personal time and the legalisation of excessive labor."

Recent Workplace Reforms and Economic Background

Last year, the country enacted a six-day work schedule for specific sectors in a attempt to boost the economy.

Recent legislation, which came into effect at the start of July, allow workers to labor up to 48 hours in a week as opposed to forty.

European Labor Data and Greek Financial Indicators

• Across the European Union in 2024, the highest average hours were recorded in the Hellenic Republic, followed by Bulgaria (39.0), Poland (38.9) and Romania.
• The lowest working week in the union is in the Netherlands, as per EU statistics.
• Starting January 2025, Greece's official minimum wage was €968 a month, placing it in the lower tier among European nations.
• Joblessness, which had reached a high at twenty-eight percent during the economic downturn, was 8.1% in August versus an EU average of 5.9%, figures from Eurostat show.
• Greece is improving since its prolonged financial troubles, which concluded in recent years, but wages and living standards continue to be among the poorest in the EU.