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Government Building

The Greek legislature has ratified a contentious labor reform that enables extended-length working days, in the face of widespread resistance and countrywide strike actions.

The administration claimed the measure will update Greek labor regulations, but opposition figures from the progressive faction labeled it as a "legislative monstrosity."

Key Provisions of the New Labor Law

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

The government maintains that the extended shift is optional, solely affects the business sector, and can exclusively be applied for up to 37 days annually.

Parliamentary Support and Opposition

Thursday's ballot was supported by lawmakers from the ruling centre-right party, with the moderate faction – now the primary opposition – voting against the bill, while the left-wing group did not vote.

Worker organizations have organized two general strikes calling for the law's repeal this month that halted public transport and public services to a standstill.

Official Justification and Worker Safeguards

A senior official supported the bill, saying the reforms bring in line national legislation with current employment conditions, and accused critics of misinforming the citizens.

The laws will give employees the option to take on additional hours with the current company for 40% higher pay, while ensuring they will not be fired for refusing overtime.

This complies with EU working-time regulations, which cap the average workweek to forty-eight hours counting overtime but allow adjustments over 12 months, according to the administration.

Opposition Viewpoints and Labor Reactions

But, opposition parties have accused the government of eroding workers' rights and "driving the nation back to a labor middle age." They argue local employees currently put in more time than the majority of Europeans while earning less and still "struggle to make ends meet."

A major labor organization stated flexible working hours in reality mean "the end of the eight-hour day, the destruction of family and social life and the authorization of excessive labor."

Recent Workplace Changes and Financial Context

Last year, the country enacted a six-day working week for certain industries in a attempt to boost the economy.

Recent laws, which came into effect at the start of the summer, allow workers to work up to 48 hours in a workweek as instead of forty.

EU Work Statistics and National Financial Indicators

• Throughout the EU in 2024, the highest 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 union is in the Netherlands, according to EU statistics.
• Starting this year, the nation's national minimum wage was €968 a month, placing it in the bottom group among EU countries.
• Unemployment, 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%, data from Eurostat indicate.
• The country is improving since its prolonged debt crisis, which ended in 2018, but wages and living standards continue to be among the lowest in the European Union.