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Government Building

Greece's parliament has approved a hotly debated labor reform that authorizes 13-hour work shifts, despite strong opposition and nationwide strike actions.

Government officials asserted the measure will revamp the country's labor regulations, but critics from the left-wing party described it as a "legislative monstrosity."

Key Elements of the Recently Passed Labor Law

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

The government insists that the longer shift is voluntary, only applies to the business sector, and can only be used for up to 37 days annually.

Political Backing and Resistance

The recent ballot was backed by lawmakers from the ruling conservative party, with the moderate faction – currently the main opposition – voting against the bill, while the left-wing group did not vote.

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

Government Defense and Worker Protections

The Labor Minister defended the bill, saying the reforms align Greek legislation with modern employment realities, and accused opposition leaders of misleading the citizens.

The laws will provide employees the choice to accept additional hours with the current company for increased pay, while guaranteeing they cannot be fired for declining extra hours.

The measure follows European Union working-time regulations, which cap the mean workweek to 48 hours counting extra hours but allow adjustments over a year, as stated by the government.

Opposition Viewpoints and Labor Responses

However, opposition parties have charged the government of eroding workers' rights and "driving the nation back to a labor middle age." They argue Greek employees already work longer hours 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 eight-hour day, the disruption of personal time and the authorization of excessive labor."

Recent Workplace Reforms and Economic Background

Last year, Greece introduced a six-day work schedule for specific industries in a attempt to boost economic growth.

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

European Work Statistics and Greek Financial Metrics

• Throughout the European Union in the previous year, the highest working weeks were recorded in Greece (39.8 hours), then Bulgaria (39.0), Poland and Romania (38.8).
• The shortest working week in the union is in the Netherlands (32.1), according to Eurostat.
• Starting this year, Greece's official minimum wage stood at nine hundred sixty-eight euros a month, ranking it in the bottom group among European nations.
• Unemployment, which had reached a high at 28% during the financial crisis, was eight point one percent in the summer versus an European mean of five point nine percent, data from the statistical office show.
• Greece is improving since its prolonged financial troubles, which concluded in 2018, but wages and quality of life continue to be among the lowest in the EU.