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Government Building

Greece's legislature has approved a disputed labor reform that enables extended-length working days, in the face of fierce opposition and nationwide protests.

Government officials claimed the measure will modernize Greek work laws, but opposition figures from the left-wing party described it as a "legislative monstrosity."

Key Elements of the New Labor Law

Under the newly enacted legislation, yearly overtime is also at one hundred and fifty hours, while the standard forty-hour week stays unchanged.

Officials insists that the longer workday is elective, only applies to the private sector, and can only be used for up to 37 days each year.

Parliamentary Backing and Opposition

The recent vote was supported by MPs from the governing centre-right political group, with the centre-left faction – currently the primary resistance – rejecting the bill, while the progressive group abstained.

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

Official Justification and Worker Safeguards

A senior official defended the legislation, saying the changes align national laws with modern labor-market realities, and alleged critics of misleading the public.

These regulations will provide workers the choice to take on additional hours with the same employer for 40% higher compensation, while ensuring they will not be fired for refusing extra hours.

The measure complies with European Union labor rules, which limit the average week to 48 hours counting overtime but permit adjustments over 12 months, according to the administration.

Critical Viewpoints and Labor Reactions

But, critics have accused the administration of eroding workers' rights and "pushing the nation back to a medieval work era." They argue local employees currently work longer hours than most Europeans while receiving lower pay and still "face financial difficulties."

The public-sector union said flexible working hours in practice mean "the abolition of the standard workday, the destruction of family and social life and the legalisation of excessive labor."

Previous Workplace Changes and Economic Context

In 2024, the country introduced a six-day work schedule for specific sectors in a attempt to stimulate economic growth.

Recent laws, which started at the beginning of the summer, permit workers to labor up to 48 hours in a week as instead of forty.

EU Work Data and Greek Financial Metrics

• Throughout the European Union in the previous year, the longest average hours were recorded in Greece (39.8 hours), followed by Bulgaria (39.0), Poland and Romania.
• The lowest working week in the union is in the Netherlands (32.1), according to EU statistics.
• As of January 2025, the nation's national base pay stood at €968 a month, placing it in the bottom group among EU countries.
• Joblessness, which had peaked at twenty-eight percent during the economic downturn, was eight point one percent in the summer compared with an EU average of five point nine percent, figures from the statistical office indicate.
• Greece is recovering since its decade-long financial troubles, which concluded in 2018, but salaries and quality of life continue to be among the poorest in the European Union.