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Government Building

The Greek legislature has approved a hotly debated labor reform that permits 13-hour work shifts, despite fierce resistance and nationwide strike actions.

Government officials stated the law will modernize Greek work laws, but critics from the left-wing party described it as a "regulatory disaster."

Key Provisions of the Recently Passed Labor Law

Under the freshly approved legislation, annual overtime is also at 150 hours, while the regular forty-hour workweek remains in place.

The government maintains that the extended workday is optional, solely applies to the private sector, and can exclusively be applied for up to 37 days annually.

Political Support and Opposition

Thursday's vote was backed by MPs from the governing centre-right political group, with the moderate party – currently the primary resistance – rejecting the legislation, while the left-wing party abstained.

Worker organizations have organized two general strikes demanding the law's repeal this month that brought public transport and public services to a standstill.

Government Justification and Employee Safeguards

The Labor Minister supported the legislation, claiming the changes bring in line national legislation with current employment conditions, and alleged opposition leaders of misleading the public.

The laws will provide employees the choice to take on extra work with the current company for 40% higher compensation, while guaranteeing they will not be fired for declining overtime.

This complies with EU working-time rules, which cap the average week to forty-eight hours counting overtime but permit flexibility over a year, according to the government.

Critical Viewpoints and Labor Responses

But, opposition parties have charged the government of eroding employee protections and "driving the country back to a medieval work era." They argue Greek workers currently put in more time than the majority of EU citizens while receiving lower pay and still "face financial difficulties."

A major labor organization said flexible working hours in reality mean "the end of the standard workday, the destruction of personal time and the legalisation of excessive labor."

Previous Labor Changes and Economic Background

Last year, Greece enacted a six-day work schedule for certain sectors in a attempt to boost economic growth.

Recent legislation, which came into effect at the start of the summer, allow employees to labor up to 48 hours in a workweek as instead of forty.

EU Labor Statistics and Greek Economic Metrics

• Across the European Union in the previous year, the highest working weeks were observed in Greece (39.8 hours), followed by Bulgaria, Poland (38.9) and Romania (38.8).
• The shortest working week in the bloc is in the Netherlands, as per Eurostat.
• As of this year, the nation's national base pay was €968 a month, placing it in the bottom group among EU countries.
• Joblessness, which had reached a high at twenty-eight percent during the economic downturn, was eight point one percent in the summer compared with an European mean of five point nine percent, figures from the statistical office indicate.
• The country is improving since its prolonged debt crisis, which concluded in 2018, but wages and quality of life remain among the lowest in the EU.