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Government Building

Greece's parliament has ratified a disputed work legislation that authorizes extended-length work shifts, despite widespread resistance and nationwide strike actions.

The administration stated the law will modernize Greek labor regulations, but opposition figures from the progressive party labeled it as a "legislative monstrosity."

Main Elements of the Recently Passed Work Legislation

According to the freshly approved legislation, annual extra hours is capped at one hundred and fifty hours, while the standard forty-hour week remains in place.

Officials maintains that the extended shift is voluntary, only applies to the private sector, and can only be applied for up to thirty-seven days annually.

Parliamentary Backing and Resistance

The recent ballot was supported by MPs from the ruling conservative party, with the moderate faction – now the primary opposition – voting against the bill, while the progressive party abstained.

Worker organizations have staged two general strikes calling for the law's repeal recently that brought transportation and public services to a standstill.

Official Justification and Worker Safeguards

A senior official supported the bill, claiming the changes bring in line Greek legislation with modern employment conditions, and accused critics of misleading the citizens.

These regulations will give employees the choice to accept additional hours with the current company for increased compensation, while guaranteeing they will not be fired for refusing overtime.

This follows EU working-time regulations, which cap the average workweek to forty-eight hours counting extra hours but permit flexibility over 12 months, according to the government.

Critical Viewpoints and Labor Responses

However, critics have accused the administration of eroding workers' rights and "driving the country back to a medieval work era." They argue local employees currently put in more time than the majority of EU citizens while earning less 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 disruption of family and social life and the legalisation of over-exploitation."

Recent Workplace Changes and Economic Background

In 2024, the country enacted a six-day working week for certain sectors in a attempt to stimulate economic growth.

New laws, which came into effect at the beginning of July, allow workers to work up to forty-eight hours in a week as instead of 40.

European Labor Data and Greek Financial Metrics

• Across the European Union in 2024, the highest working weeks were observed in the Hellenic Republic, followed by Bulgaria (39.0), Poland (38.9) and Romania (38.8).
• The shortest working week in the union is in the Netherlands, as per EU statistics.
• As of this year, the nation's national minimum wage stood at nine hundred sixty-eight euros a month, placing it in the lower tier among European nations.
• Unemployment, which had reached a high at 28% during the financial crisis, was eight point one percent in August compared with an EU average of five point nine percent, data from the statistical office indicate.
• The country is improving since its prolonged debt crisis, which concluded in recent years, but salaries and quality of life continue to be among the poorest in the EU.