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Government Building

Greece's legislature has ratified a disputed work legislation that enables extended-length working days, in the face of widespread resistance and nationwide protests.

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

Key Elements of the Recently Passed Work Legislation

Under the newly enacted legislation, annual extra hours is also at 150 hours, while the regular forty-hour week continues as before.

Officials insists that the extended shift is optional, only affects the private sector, and can exclusively be implemented for up to 37 days each year.

Political Backing and Opposition

The recent ballot was backed by lawmakers from the governing conservative political group, with the centre-left party – now the primary resistance – voting against the legislation, while the progressive group abstained.

Worker organizations have organized multiple protests demanding the law's repeal recently that halted public transport and public services to a stop.

Official Justification and Employee Protections

The Labor Minister defended the legislation, saying the reforms bring in line national legislation with current employment realities, and alleged critics of misleading the public.

These regulations will provide workers the option to accept extra work with the same employer for increased pay, while ensuring they cannot be fired for refusing extra hours.

This follows EU working-time regulations, which cap the mean workweek to forty-eight hours counting extra hours but allow flexibility over 12 months, as stated by the government.

Critical Viewpoints and Labor Responses

However, critics have charged the government of eroding workers' rights and "driving the nation back to a medieval work era." They say local employees already put in more time than the majority of EU citizens while earning less and still "struggle to make ends meet."

The public-sector union stated variable shifts in practice mean "the abolition of the eight-hour day, the destruction of personal time and the authorization of excessive labor."

Recent Workplace Reforms and Economic Context

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

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

EU Labor Statistics and Greek Financial Indicators

• Throughout the EU in 2024, the longest working weeks were observed in Greece (39.8 hours), then Bulgaria, Poland (38.9) and Romania.
• The shortest working week in the union is in the Netherlands (32.1), according to Eurostat.
• Starting this year, Greece's national base pay was €968 a month, placing it in the lower tier among European nations.
• Unemployment, which had reached a high at twenty-eight percent during the economic downturn, was eight point one percent in August compared with an EU average of 5.9%, data from Eurostat indicate.
• Greece is improving since its prolonged debt crisis, which concluded in 2018, but wages and living standards remain among the lowest in the EU.