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Government Building

The Greek legislature has approved a disputed labor reform that authorizes 13-hour work shifts, in the face of fierce opposition and nationwide strike actions.

The administration stated the law will update Greek work laws, but opposition figures from the progressive faction labeled it as a "harmful law."

Key Provisions of the New Labor Law

Under the newly enacted legislation, annual extra hours is capped at one hundred and fifty hours, while the regular 40-hour week remains in place.

Officials emphasizes that the longer shift is optional, solely affects the business sector, and can only be implemented for up to 37 days annually.

Parliamentary Support and Opposition

Thursday's vote was backed by MPs from the governing centre-right party, with the moderate faction – now the main opposition – rejecting the bill, while the left-wing group did not vote.

Labor unions have organized two general strikes demanding the law's repeal this month that brought public transport and services to a stop.

Government Defense and Worker Safeguards

A senior official defended the legislation, claiming the changes align Greek legislation with current labor-market conditions, and accused opposition leaders of misinforming the citizens.

The laws will give employees the option to accept additional hours with the current company for 40% higher compensation, while guaranteeing they will not be dismissed for declining extra hours.

This follows EU labor rules, which limit the mean workweek to 48 hours including extra hours but permit adjustments over a year, as stated by the government.

Critical Viewpoints and Union Reactions

But, opposition parties have charged the government of weakening employee protections and "driving the nation back to a medieval work era." They argue Greek employees currently put in more time than most Europeans while receiving lower pay and still "face financial difficulties."

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

Recent Labor Changes and Economic Background

In 2024, the country enacted a six-day working week for certain industries in a bid to stimulate the economy.

Recent laws, which started at the start of the summer, allow employees to labor up to 48 hours in a workweek as opposed to forty.

European Labor Data and Greek Financial Metrics

• Throughout the EU in the previous year, the highest working weeks were observed in Greece (39.8 hours), followed by Bulgaria (39.0), Poland (38.9) and Romania.
• The lowest working week in the bloc is in the Netherlands (32.1), according to Eurostat.
• As of this year, the nation's national minimum wage was nine hundred sixty-eight euros a month, placing it in the lower tier among European nations.
• Joblessness, which had reached a high at twenty-eight percent during the economic downturn, was eight point one percent in August versus an EU average of 5.9%, data from the statistical office show.
• The country is recovering since its decade-long financial troubles, which concluded in 2018, but salaries and quality of life remain among the poorest in the European Union.