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Greece's legislature has approved a contentious work legislation that permits 13-hour working days, despite widespread opposition and nationwide protests.

Government officials asserted the law will update Greek labor regulations, but critics from the left-wing party described it as a "regulatory disaster."

Main Provisions of the New Work Legislation

According to the newly enacted law, annual overtime is limited at one hundred and fifty hours, while the standard forty-hour week stays unchanged.

The government insists that the longer shift is optional, solely applies to the business sector, and can only be used for up to 37 days each year.

Political Support and Resistance

The recent ballot was backed by MPs from the ruling conservative political group, with the centre-left party – currently the primary resistance – voting against the bill, while the progressive party abstained.

Labor unions have staged multiple protests calling for the law's repeal this month that halted transportation and public services to a standstill.

Government Justification and Worker Safeguards

The Labor Minister supported the bill, stating the changes bring in line national laws with current labor-market conditions, and accused opposition leaders of misleading the citizens.

The laws will provide employees the choice to accept extra work with the current company for increased compensation, while ensuring they cannot be dismissed for refusing extra hours.

This follows EU working-time regulations, which cap the average workweek to 48 hours counting overtime but permit flexibility over 12 months, as stated by the government.

Critical Viewpoints and Labor Reactions

However, opposition parties have charged the administration of weakening employee protections and "pushing the nation back to a labor middle age." They say local workers currently put in more time than most EU citizens while earning less and still "face financial difficulties."

A major labor organization said variable shifts in practice mean "the abolition of the eight-hour day, the destruction of personal time and the legalisation of excessive labor."

Previous Labor Changes and Economic Background

In 2024, Greece introduced a six-day work schedule for certain sectors in a attempt to boost the economy.

New laws, which started at the beginning of the summer, permit workers to work up to 48 hours in a week as opposed to forty.

EU Labor Data and National Economic Indicators

• Across the European Union in the previous year, the highest working weeks were observed in the Hellenic Republic, 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.
• Starting January 2025, Greece's national base pay was nine hundred sixty-eight euros a month, ranking it in the lower tier among European nations.
• Joblessness, which had reached a high at twenty-eight percent 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 recovering since its prolonged financial troubles, which concluded in 2018, but salaries and living standards remain among the lowest in the EU.