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Government Building

The Greek legislature has approved a hotly debated work legislation that enables 13-hour work shifts, in the face of widespread opposition and nationwide protests.

The administration stated the measure will modernize Greek labor regulations, but opposition figures from the left-wing faction labeled it as a "legislative monstrosity."

Main Provisions of the New Labor Law

Under the newly enacted legislation, annual overtime is also at one hundred and fifty hours, while the regular forty-hour workweek continues as before.

The government emphasizes that the extended shift is voluntary, only applies to the business sector, and can only be implemented for up to 37 days each year.

Political Support and Resistance

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

Worker organizations have staged two general strikes demanding the law's repeal this month that halted transportation and services to a stop.

Official Defense and Employee Safeguards

A senior official defended the legislation, stating the reforms bring in line Greek legislation with current employment realities, and alleged critics of misleading the public.

The laws will give employees the option to take on extra work with the current company for increased pay, while ensuring they will not be fired for declining extra hours.

The measure follows European Union working-time rules, which limit the average workweek to 48 hours counting extra hours but allow flexibility over 12 months, according to the government.

Opposition Viewpoints and Union Reactions

However, critics have accused the administration of weakening workers' rights and "driving the country back to a labor middle age." They argue Greek employees currently put in more time than most EU citizens while earning less and still "struggle to make ends meet."

A major labor organization said flexible working hours in reality mean "the abolition of the standard workday, the disruption of personal time and the authorization of excessive labor."

Previous Workplace Changes and Economic Context

Last year, Greece introduced a six-day working week for specific industries in a attempt to boost economic growth.

Recent legislation, which came into effect at the beginning of July, allow employees to work up to 48 hours in a workweek as opposed to 40.

European Labor Data and Greek Financial Indicators

• Throughout the European Union in 2024, the highest average hours were recorded in the Hellenic Republic, then Bulgaria, Poland and Romania.
• The shortest work hours in the bloc is in the Netherlands (32.1), as per EU statistics.
• As of this year, the nation's national minimum wage stood at nine hundred sixty-eight euros a month, ranking it in the lower tier among EU countries.
• Unemployment, which had peaked at twenty-eight percent during the economic downturn, was eight point one percent in August compared with an European mean of five point nine percent, data from the statistical office show.
• Greece is improving since its prolonged financial troubles, which concluded in 2018, but salaries and living standards remain among the poorest in the EU.