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Government Building

The Greek legislature has ratified a disputed work legislation that permits 13-hour work shifts, despite strong resistance and countrywide protests.

The administration asserted the law will update Greek work laws, but critics from the progressive faction described it as a "regulatory disaster."

Key Elements of the New Work Legislation

According to the newly enacted legislation, yearly overtime is also at 150 hours, while the standard 40-hour workweek continues as before.

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

Political Support and Resistance

The recent ballot was supported by MPs from the governing centre-right party, with the centre-left party – now the main resistance – rejecting the bill, while the left-wing party abstained.

Labor unions have staged multiple protests demanding the law's repeal this month that halted public transport and services to a standstill.

Official Defense and Worker Protections

The Labor Minister defended the legislation, claiming the reforms bring in line Greek legislation with current employment realities, and alleged critics of misinforming the public.

The laws will give workers the option to take on additional hours with the same employer for increased compensation, while guaranteeing they cannot be dismissed for refusing extra hours.

The measure complies with EU working-time rules, which cap the mean workweek to 48 hours including overtime but permit flexibility over a year, according to the administration.

Opposition Perspectives and Labor Responses

But, opposition parties have charged the administration of weakening workers' rights and "driving the nation back to a medieval work era." They say Greek employees currently put in more time than most Europeans while earning less and still "struggle to make ends meet."

The public-sector union stated flexible working hours in reality mean "the end of the eight-hour day, the disruption of family and social life and the authorization of excessive labor."

Recent Labor Reforms and Financial Context

In 2024, Greece enacted a six-day work schedule for specific sectors in a bid to stimulate the economy.

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

European Labor Statistics and National Economic Metrics

• Across the EU in 2024, the longest working weeks were observed in Greece (39.8 hours), then Bulgaria, Poland (38.9) and Romania.
• The shortest working week in the bloc is in the Netherlands (32.1), according to EU statistics.
• As of this year, the nation's official minimum wage stood at €968 a month, placing it in the lower tier among EU countries.
• Unemployment, which had reached a high at twenty-eight percent during the financial crisis, was 8.1% in August compared with 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 remain among the lowest in the EU.