🔗 Share this article

Government Building

Greece's parliament has approved a hotly debated work legislation that authorizes 13-hour working days, in the face of widespread opposition and nationwide protests.

The administration stated the law will revamp the country's labor regulations, but opposition figures from the progressive faction labeled it as a "legislative monstrosity."

Main Provisions of the New Labor Law

According to the freshly approved law, yearly overtime is capped at 150 hours, while the standard 40-hour workweek continues as before.

Officials emphasizes that the longer workday is voluntary, only applies to the business sector, and can exclusively be implemented for up to 37 days annually.

Political Backing and Resistance

Thursday's vote was backed by MPs from the governing centre-right political group, with the moderate party – currently the primary opposition – voting against the bill, while the progressive party did not vote.

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

Official Defense and Employee Protections

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

These regulations will provide employees the option to accept extra work with the current company for increased pay, while ensuring they will not be dismissed for declining overtime.

This follows European Union labor rules, which limit the mean week to forty-eight hours counting overtime but permit adjustments over 12 months, according to the administration.

Critical Viewpoints and Labor Reactions

But, critics have charged the government of weakening employee protections and "pushing the nation back to a labor middle age." They say Greek employees currently work longer hours than most Europeans while earning less and still "face financial difficulties."

The public-sector union stated variable shifts in practice mean "the end of the standard workday, the destruction of family and social life and the legalisation of excessive labor."

Previous Workplace Reforms and Financial Background

Last year, the country introduced a six-day work schedule for specific industries in a bid to stimulate economic growth.

Recent laws, which came into effect at the start of July, permit employees to labor up to 48 hours in a week as instead of forty.

EU Work Data and Greek Economic Metrics

• Across the European Union in the previous year, the highest working weeks were recorded in Greece (39.8 hours), then Bulgaria, Poland and Romania (38.8).
• The lowest working week in the union is in the Netherlands, as per Eurostat.
• Starting this year, Greece's official minimum wage stood at €968 a month, placing it in the bottom group among European nations.
• Unemployment, which had reached a high at 28% during the financial crisis, was eight point one percent in the summer versus an European mean of 5.9%, figures from the statistical office show.
• The country is improving since its prolonged debt crisis, which ended in 2018, but salaries and quality of life continue to be among the lowest in the EU.