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Greece's parliament has approved a hotly debated work legislation that permits extended-length work shifts, in the face of strong opposition and nationwide strike actions.

Government officials asserted the law will revamp the country's labor regulations, but opposition figures from the left-wing party labeled it as a "regulatory disaster."

Key Provisions of the Recently Passed Labor Law

According to the newly enacted law, yearly overtime is capped at 150 hours, while the regular forty-hour workweek stays unchanged.

Officials emphasizes that the extended workday is elective, solely applies to the private sector, and can only be implemented for up to thirty-seven days each year.

Parliamentary Support and Opposition

The recent ballot was supported by lawmakers from the governing centre-right political group, with the centre-left faction – now the main opposition – voting against the legislation, while the progressive group did not vote.

Labor unions have organized two general strikes demanding the bill's withdrawal recently that halted transportation and services to a standstill.

Government Defense and Worker Safeguards

The Labor Minister supported the bill, stating the changes bring in line national legislation with current employment conditions, and accused opposition leaders of misinforming the public.

These regulations will provide employees the option to accept extra work with the same employer for 40% higher compensation, while ensuring they cannot be dismissed for refusing extra hours.

This complies with EU working-time rules, which cap the average week to forty-eight hours including extra hours but permit adjustments over a year, as stated by the administration.

Critical Perspectives and Union Responses

But, opposition parties have charged the administration of eroding employee protections and "driving the nation back to a medieval work era." They say Greek workers currently work longer hours than most EU citizens 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 eight-hour day, the disruption of personal time and the authorization of excessive labor."

Recent Workplace Reforms and Economic Background

In 2024, Greece enacted a six-day working week for specific industries in a attempt to boost the economy.

Recent legislation, which came into effect at the start of the summer, allow employees to labor up to forty-eight hours in a week as opposed to 40.

European Work Statistics and National Financial Indicators

• Across the European Union in 2024, the longest working weeks were observed in the Hellenic Republic, followed by Bulgaria, Poland (38.9) and Romania.
• The lowest work hours in the union is in the Netherlands, as per EU statistics.
• Starting this year, Greece's official minimum wage stood at nine hundred sixty-eight euros a month, placing it in the bottom group among European nations.
• Joblessness, which had peaked at 28% during the economic downturn, was eight point one percent in August compared with an European mean of 5.9%, data from Eurostat show.
• Greece is recovering since its prolonged debt crisis, which ended in recent years, but wages and living standards continue to be among the poorest in the European Union.