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Government Building

The Greek parliament has approved a hotly debated labor reform that enables 13-hour working days, despite fierce resistance and countrywide protests.

The administration asserted the measure will update the country's work laws, but critics from the left-wing faction described it as a "legislative monstrosity."

Key Elements of the Recently Passed Work Legislation

According to the newly enacted legislation, annual extra hours is also at 150 hours, while the regular 40-hour week stays unchanged.

The government emphasizes that the extended shift is optional, only applies to the private sector, and can exclusively be applied for up to 37 days each year.

Parliamentary Support and Opposition

The recent vote was backed by MPs from the governing centre-right party, with the moderate faction – currently the primary resistance – rejecting the bill, while the left-wing group abstained.

Labor unions have organized two general strikes demanding the bill's withdrawal this month that halted public transport and public services to a stop.

Government Justification and Employee Safeguards

The Labor Minister defended the bill, stating the changes bring in line Greek laws with current labor-market conditions, and alleged opposition leaders of misleading the public.

The laws will provide workers the choice to accept additional hours with the current company for increased compensation, while ensuring they will not be dismissed for declining overtime.

This complies with EU labor regulations, which cap the average week to forty-eight hours including overtime but permit adjustments over 12 months, as stated by the government.

Opposition Viewpoints and Union Reactions

But, critics have charged the administration of weakening employee protections and "driving the country back to a labor middle age." They say Greek workers currently work longer hours than most Europeans while earning less 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 over-exploitation."

Recent Workplace Changes and Economic Background

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

New laws, which came into effect at the beginning of July, permit workers to labor up to forty-eight hours in a week as opposed to 40.

EU Labor Statistics and Greek Economic Indicators

• Throughout the EU in the previous year, the longest average hours were recorded in the Hellenic Republic, then Bulgaria, Poland (38.9) and Romania (38.8).
• The shortest work hours in the bloc is in the Netherlands, as per Eurostat.
• Starting January 2025, the nation's national minimum wage stood at €968 a month, placing it in the bottom group among EU countries.
• Joblessness, which had peaked at twenty-eight percent during the financial crisis, was 8.1% in August versus an European mean of 5.9%, data from Eurostat show.
• The country is improving since its decade-long debt crisis, which ended in recent years, but wages and quality of life remain among the lowest in the EU.