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Government Building

The Greek legislature has approved a contentious work legislation that enables extended-length working days, despite widespread resistance and nationwide strike actions.

The administration stated the measure will update the country's work laws, but opposition figures from the left-wing faction described it as a "harmful law."

Key Elements of the Recently Passed Work Legislation

According to the newly enacted law, yearly extra hours is also at one hundred and fifty hours, while the standard 40-hour workweek continues as before.

The government maintains that the extended shift is elective, only affects the business sector, and can only be implemented for up to 37 days each year.

Parliamentary Backing and Resistance

Thursday's vote was supported by MPs from the ruling centre-right party, with the moderate party – currently the main opposition – voting against the bill, while the progressive group abstained.

Labor unions have staged multiple protests demanding the law's repeal recently that halted transportation and public services to a standstill.

Government Justification and Employee Protections

The Labor Minister defended the legislation, saying the reforms bring in line national legislation with modern employment conditions, and alleged critics of misleading the citizens.

The laws will provide workers the choice to accept additional hours with the same employer for 40% higher compensation, while ensuring they will not be fired for refusing overtime.

The measure complies with EU labor regulations, which cap the mean week to 48 hours counting extra hours but allow adjustments over 12 months, as stated by the administration.

Opposition Viewpoints and Labor Reactions

But, critics have accused the government of eroding workers' rights and "pushing the nation back to a medieval work era." They say Greek employees currently put in more time than the majority of EU citizens while earning less and still "struggle to make ends meet."

The public-sector union said variable shifts in practice mean "the end of the eight-hour day, the disruption of personal time and the authorization of over-exploitation."

Previous Labor Reforms and Economic Background

Last year, the country enacted a six-day working week for certain industries in a bid to boost economic growth.

Recent legislation, which started at the start of the summer, allow workers to work up to 48 hours in a week as opposed to forty.

EU Labor Data and National Economic Indicators

• Throughout the European Union in 2024, the longest working weeks were recorded in the Hellenic Republic, followed by Bulgaria, Poland and Romania (38.8).
• The shortest work hours in the union is in the Netherlands, according to Eurostat.
• Starting January 2025, the nation's official base pay stood at €968 a month, ranking it in the bottom group among EU countries.
• Unemployment, which had peaked at twenty-eight percent during the economic downturn, was eight point one percent in the summer compared with an EU average of five point nine percent, data from Eurostat show.
• The country is recovering since its prolonged debt crisis, which ended in recent years, but wages and living standards remain among the lowest in the EU.