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Government Building

Greece's parliament has given the green light a contentious labor reform that enables extended-length working days, in the face of strong opposition and countrywide protests.

The administration asserted the law will modernize the country's work laws, but opposition figures from the progressive faction described it as a "legislative monstrosity."

Main Provisions of the Recently Passed Labor Law

Under the newly enacted legislation, yearly extra hours is limited at one hundred and fifty hours, while the standard 40-hour week remains in place.

Officials insists that the extended shift is elective, only applies to the business sector, and can only be used for up to 37 days annually.

Parliamentary Support and Opposition

The recent ballot was backed by lawmakers from the governing conservative political group, with the centre-left faction – now the primary opposition – rejecting the bill, while the progressive group did not vote.

Labor unions have staged two general strikes demanding the law's repeal recently that brought public transport and public services to a stop.

Official Justification and Employee Safeguards

The Labor Minister defended the legislation, stating the reforms align national laws with modern labor-market realities, and alleged critics of misleading the citizens.

The laws will provide workers the choice to take on additional hours with the current company for 40% higher pay, while ensuring they cannot be dismissed for refusing extra hours.

This complies with EU labor regulations, which cap the mean workweek to forty-eight hours including overtime but permit flexibility over a year, as stated by the government.

Opposition Perspectives and Labor Reactions

However, critics have accused the government of eroding employee protections and "driving the country back to a labor middle age." They say Greek workers currently put in more time than the majority of EU citizens while earning less and still "face financial difficulties."

A major labor organization said flexible working hours in reality mean "the end of the standard workday, the disruption of personal time and the authorization of over-exploitation."

Previous Labor Reforms and Financial Background

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

Recent legislation, which came into effect at the beginning of July, allow employees to labor up to forty-eight hours in a workweek as instead of forty.

EU Work Statistics and Greek Economic Metrics

• Across the EU in the previous year, the longest working weeks were observed in Greece (39.8 hours), then Bulgaria (39.0), Poland (38.9) and Romania (38.8).
• The lowest work hours in the bloc is in the Netherlands (32.1), as per Eurostat.
• Starting January 2025, 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 the summer versus an European mean of five point nine percent, data from Eurostat indicate.
• Greece is recovering since its prolonged financial troubles, which concluded in recent years, but wages and quality of life continue to be among the lowest in the European Union.