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Government Building

The Greek legislature has given the green light a contentious labor reform that enables extended-length work shifts, in the face of fierce opposition and countrywide protests.

The administration asserted the law will modernize the country's work laws, but opposition figures from the left-wing party labeled it as a "harmful law."

Main Provisions of the New Work Legislation

According to the newly enacted legislation, yearly overtime is capped at 150 hours, while the regular 40-hour workweek continues as before.

The government emphasizes that the longer workday is optional, solely applies to the private sector, and can only be implemented for up to thirty-seven days each year.

Parliamentary Backing and Resistance

Thursday's ballot was backed by MPs from the ruling centre-right party, with the moderate party – now the primary opposition – voting against the bill, while the progressive party abstained.

Worker organizations have staged two general strikes demanding the bill's withdrawal this month that brought transportation and services to a standstill.

Official Defense and Worker Protections

A senior official defended the legislation, stating the changes align Greek legislation with modern labor-market conditions, and accused critics of misinforming the citizens.

The laws will provide workers the option to accept additional hours with the current company for 40% higher compensation, while ensuring they will not be dismissed for declining extra hours.

The measure follows EU working-time rules, which limit the mean week to forty-eight hours including overtime but allow flexibility over 12 months, as stated by the government.

Critical Viewpoints and Union Responses

However, critics have accused the government of weakening workers' rights and "driving the nation back to a labor middle age." They argue local employees currently put in more time than the majority of EU citizens while receiving lower pay and still "face financial difficulties."

The public-sector union stated variable shifts in reality mean "the end of the standard workday, the destruction of personal time and the authorization of excessive labor."

Previous Labor Reforms and Financial Context

In 2024, Greece enacted a six-day working week for certain sectors in a bid to stimulate economic growth.

New laws, which started at the beginning of the summer, permit workers to work up to forty-eight hours in a workweek as opposed to 40.

European Work Data and National Economic Indicators

• Across the European Union in the previous year, the highest working weeks were recorded in the Hellenic Republic, followed by Bulgaria, Poland and Romania.
• The lowest work hours in the union is in the Netherlands (32.1), as per Eurostat.
• As of January 2025, the nation's national minimum wage stood at nine hundred sixty-eight euros a month, placing it in the lower tier among European nations.
• Unemployment, which had peaked at 28% during the economic downturn, was eight point one percent in August compared with an EU average of five point nine percent, data from Eurostat indicate.
• The country is improving since its decade-long financial troubles, which concluded in recent years, but salaries and quality of life remain among the lowest in the European Union.