🔗 Share this article

Government Building

Greece's parliament has ratified a hotly debated labor reform that permits extended-length working days, in the face of strong opposition and countrywide strike actions.

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

Main Provisions of the New Labor Law

Under the newly enacted law, yearly overtime is limited at one hundred and fifty hours, while the regular 40-hour week stays unchanged.

The government insists that the extended workday is voluntary, only affects the business sector, and can only be used for up to 37 days each year.

Parliamentary Support and Opposition

Thursday's ballot was backed by lawmakers from the ruling conservative political group, with the centre-left faction – now the main resistance – voting against the bill, while the left-wing party abstained.

Worker organizations have organized two general strikes calling for the bill's withdrawal recently that halted public transport and public services to a stop.

Government Justification and Employee Protections

A senior official defended the legislation, claiming the changes align national laws with current labor-market realities, and accused opposition leaders of misleading the citizens.

The laws will provide employees the choice to accept additional hours with the current company for 40% higher pay, while ensuring they will not be fired for refusing overtime.

The measure complies with European Union labor rules, which cap the mean workweek to forty-eight hours counting extra hours but permit flexibility over 12 months, according to the government.

Critical Viewpoints and Union Reactions

However, opposition parties have charged the government of weakening workers' rights and "driving the nation back to a medieval work era." They argue Greek employees currently put in more time than most Europeans while earning less and still "face financial difficulties."

The public-sector union stated flexible working hours in reality mean "the abolition of the standard workday, the destruction of family and social life and the legalisation of excessive labor."

Recent Workplace Changes and Economic Background

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

New legislation, which started at the start of July, permit workers to work up to forty-eight hours in a week as instead of 40.

European Labor Data and Greek Financial Metrics

• Throughout the EU in the previous year, the highest average hours were recorded in Greece (39.8 hours), followed by Bulgaria (39.0), Poland (38.9) and Romania.
• The lowest working week in the bloc is in the Netherlands, as per EU statistics.
• Starting this year, 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 August versus an EU average of five point nine percent, figures from the statistical office indicate.
• The country is recovering since its prolonged financial troubles, which ended in recent years, but wages and quality of life remain among the lowest in the EU.