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Government Building

The Greek legislature has ratified a contentious work legislation that permits extended-length working days, despite strong resistance and countrywide strike actions.

The administration stated the measure will revamp Greek work laws, but opposition figures from the progressive faction labeled it as a "legislative monstrosity."

Key Elements of the New Labor Law

According to the newly enacted law, yearly overtime is capped at 150 hours, while the standard forty-hour workweek continues as before.

The government maintains that the longer workday is elective, only applies to the business sector, and can only be used for up to thirty-seven days annually.

Political Backing and Opposition

The recent ballot was supported by lawmakers from the ruling conservative party, with the moderate party – currently the primary resistance – rejecting the legislation, while the progressive party abstained.

Labor unions have staged multiple protests demanding the bill's withdrawal this month that brought transportation and services to a standstill.

Official Justification and Worker Protections

The Labor Minister defended the bill, stating the changes align Greek legislation with current labor-market conditions, and accused opposition leaders of misleading the public.

The laws will provide workers the option to take on extra work with the same employer for increased pay, while guaranteeing they cannot be fired for declining overtime.

The measure follows European Union labor rules, which cap the average workweek to 48 hours counting extra hours but permit flexibility over a year, according to the administration.

Critical Viewpoints and Labor Reactions

But, opposition parties have charged the administration of eroding workers' rights and "driving the nation back to a labor middle age." They argue local workers currently put in more time than the majority of Europeans while receiving lower pay and still "struggle to make ends meet."

A major labor organization stated flexible working hours in practice mean "the end of the standard workday, the destruction of family and social life and the authorization of over-exploitation."

Previous Workplace Changes and Financial Context

In 2024, the country introduced a six-day working week for specific sectors in a bid to stimulate the economy.

Recent legislation, which came into effect at the start of July, allow workers to work up to forty-eight hours in a workweek as opposed to forty.

European Work Statistics and Greek Economic Metrics

• Across the European Union in the previous year, the longest average hours were observed in the Hellenic Republic, then Bulgaria (39.0), Poland and Romania (38.8).
• The lowest working week in the bloc is in the Netherlands, as per EU statistics.
• Starting this year, Greece's official base pay was €968 a month, placing it in the bottom group among European nations.
• Unemployment, which had reached a high at twenty-eight percent during the financial crisis, was eight point one percent in August versus an European mean of five point nine percent, figures from Eurostat indicate.
• Greece is recovering since its decade-long financial troubles, which ended in recent years, but wages and quality of life remain among the poorest in the EU.