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Government Building

Greece's parliament has approved a contentious work legislation that enables extended-length working days, in the face of fierce opposition and nationwide strike actions.

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

Key Provisions of the Recently Passed Work Legislation

Under the newly enacted law, annual overtime is capped at one hundred and fifty hours, while the regular 40-hour workweek stays unchanged.

The government maintains that the longer workday is optional, solely affects the business sector, and can exclusively be applied for up to thirty-seven days each year.

Parliamentary Backing and Resistance

Thursday's ballot was supported by lawmakers from the ruling centre-right political group, with the centre-left faction – currently the primary opposition – voting against the bill, while the progressive party did not vote.

Labor unions have staged multiple protests calling for the law's repeal recently that brought transportation and services to a standstill.

Official Justification and Employee Protections

The Labor Minister defended the bill, stating the changes align national legislation with modern labor-market realities, and alleged opposition leaders of misinforming the citizens.

These regulations will give workers the choice to accept additional hours with the same employer for 40% higher compensation, while guaranteeing they will not be fired for refusing extra hours.

This follows European Union labor rules, which limit the mean week to 48 hours including extra hours but permit flexibility over a year, according to the administration.

Critical Perspectives and Union Responses

But, critics have charged the administration of eroding workers' rights and "pushing the country 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."

A major labor organization said flexible working hours in reality mean "the abolition of the eight-hour day, the disruption of personal time and the legalisation of excessive labor."

Previous Workplace Reforms and Financial Background

Last year, Greece enacted a six-day work schedule for certain industries in a attempt to boost economic growth.

Recent laws, which started at the start of the summer, allow employees to work up to 48 hours in a workweek as instead of forty.

European Work Statistics and National Economic Indicators

• Across the EU in 2024, the highest working weeks were observed in the Hellenic Republic, followed by Bulgaria, Poland (38.9) and Romania (38.8).
• The shortest work hours in the union is in the Netherlands (32.1), according to Eurostat.
• Starting January 2025, the nation's national base pay stood at nine hundred sixty-eight euros a month, ranking it in the bottom group among European nations.
• Joblessness, which had reached a high at 28% during the financial crisis, was 8.1% in the summer compared with an EU average of 5.9%, data from Eurostat indicate.
• Greece is recovering since its decade-long debt crisis, which concluded in 2018, but wages and quality of life remain among the poorest in the European Union.