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Government Building

Greece's parliament has given the green light a contentious work legislation that authorizes extended-length working days, despite widespread resistance and nationwide strike actions.

Government officials claimed the measure will update the country's labor regulations, but opposition figures from the progressive party described it as a "legislative monstrosity."

Key Elements of the New Labor Law

According to the freshly approved legislation, annual extra hours is also at one hundred and fifty hours, while the standard forty-hour workweek continues as before.

Officials insists that the longer shift is elective, only affects the business sector, and can only be used for up to thirty-seven days annually.

Political Support and Resistance

Thursday's vote was backed by lawmakers from the governing conservative party, with the centre-left faction – currently the main resistance – rejecting the bill, while the progressive group abstained.

Worker organizations have organized two general strikes calling for the law's repeal this month that brought transportation and services to a standstill.

Official Defense and Worker Safeguards

A senior official supported the legislation, stating the changes align Greek legislation with modern employment conditions, and accused opposition leaders of misinforming the citizens.

The laws will give workers the choice to take on extra work with the current company for increased compensation, while ensuring they cannot be fired for refusing overtime.

The measure complies with EU labor regulations, which cap the average week to forty-eight hours including extra hours but permit adjustments over 12 months, according to the administration.

Critical Viewpoints and Union Reactions

But, critics have accused the administration of eroding workers' rights and "driving the nation back to a labor middle age." They argue Greek workers currently work longer hours than most Europeans while receiving lower pay and still "struggle to make ends meet."

A major labor organization stated variable shifts in reality mean "the abolition of the standard workday, the disruption of family and social life and the authorization of excessive labor."

Previous Labor Reforms and Economic Background

In 2024, Greece enacted a six-day work schedule for specific sectors in a bid to boost economic growth.

New legislation, which came into effect at the start of July, permit workers to work up to forty-eight hours in a workweek as opposed to 40.

European Labor Statistics and National Financial Indicators

• Across the EU in the previous year, the longest working weeks were recorded in Greece (39.8 hours), followed by Bulgaria, Poland and Romania.
• The lowest working week in the union is in the Netherlands (32.1), as per Eurostat.
• Starting January 2025, Greece's official base pay was €968 a month, ranking it in the bottom group among European nations.
• Unemployment, which had peaked at 28% during the economic downturn, was 8.1% in August versus an EU average of five point nine percent, data from Eurostat indicate.
• Greece is recovering since its decade-long financial troubles, which concluded in recent years, but wages and living standards remain among the lowest in the EU.