🔗 Share this article Greece Enacts Disputed Workplace Legislation Authorizing Longer Workdays in Specific Cases Government Building The Greek legislature has given the green light a disputed labor reform that permits extended-length working days, in the face of widespread resistance and countrywide protests. Government officials stated the measure will update Greek labor regulations, but opposition figures from the left-wing party labeled it as a "regulatory disaster." Key Provisions of the New Work Legislation Under the freshly approved legislation, yearly overtime is limited at 150 hours, while the standard 40-hour workweek remains in place. The government emphasizes that the longer shift is optional, solely affects the business sector, and can exclusively be implemented for up to 37 days each year. Political Support and Opposition Thursday's ballot was supported by MPs from the governing conservative party, with the moderate party – currently the main resistance – rejecting the bill, while the progressive party abstained. Labor unions have staged multiple protests demanding the bill's withdrawal this month that halted public transport and services to a stop. Government Defense and Employee Protections The Labor Minister defended the bill, saying the reforms align Greek laws with current labor-market realities, and accused opposition leaders of misleading the citizens. These regulations will provide workers the option to take on additional hours with the same employer for 40% higher pay, while ensuring they will not be fired for declining overtime. The measure complies with European Union labor rules, which cap the average workweek to 48 hours including overtime but allow flexibility over a year, according to the administration. Opposition Viewpoints and Union Reactions However, critics have accused the government of eroding workers' rights and "driving the nation back to a medieval work era." They say Greek employees already put in more time than most Europeans while earning less and still "struggle to make ends meet." The public-sector union said flexible working hours in practice mean "the end of the eight-hour day, the disruption of family and social life and the authorization of excessive labor." Previous Workplace Changes and Economic Context Last year, the country enacted a six-day working week for certain industries in a attempt to stimulate the economy. New legislation, which came into effect at the start of the summer, permit workers to labor up to forty-eight hours in a workweek as opposed to forty. European Work Statistics and National Economic Indicators Across the European Union in 2024, the highest working weeks were observed in Greece (39.8 hours), followed by Bulgaria (39.0), Poland and Romania (38.8). The shortest working week in the union is in the Netherlands, as per Eurostat. Starting January 2025, the nation's official minimum wage stood at nine hundred sixty-eight euros a month, ranking it in the lower tier among EU countries. Joblessness, which had peaked at twenty-eight percent during the financial crisis, was eight point one percent in August versus an European mean of 5.9%, figures from Eurostat indicate. The country is recovering since its decade-long debt crisis, which concluded in 2018, but salaries and quality of life continue to be among the poorest in the EU.