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Government Building

Greece's parliament has given the green light a disputed work legislation that authorizes 13-hour working days, despite widespread opposition and nationwide strike actions.

The administration claimed the measure will update the country's labor regulations, but opposition figures from the left-wing party labeled it as a "harmful law."

Key Elements of the Recently Passed Labor Law

Under the newly enacted law, annual overtime is capped at 150 hours, while the standard forty-hour week stays unchanged.

The government maintains that the extended workday is voluntary, only applies to the business sector, and can exclusively be implemented for up to thirty-seven days each year.

Political Backing and Resistance

Thursday's vote was backed by lawmakers from the governing centre-right party, with the centre-left party – now the main resistance – voting against 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 halted transportation and public services to a standstill.

Government Defense and Worker Protections

A senior official supported the bill, stating the reforms bring in line Greek legislation with modern labor-market conditions, and alleged opposition leaders of misinforming the public.

These regulations will give workers the choice to take on extra work with the current company for increased pay, while guaranteeing they will not be fired for refusing extra hours.

This follows EU labor rules, which limit the mean week to 48 hours including extra hours but permit flexibility over 12 months, according to the administration.

Critical Viewpoints and Union Reactions

However, critics have accused the administration of eroding employee protections and "pushing the country back to a labor middle age." They say local workers currently work longer hours than the majority of EU citizens while earning less and still "face financial difficulties."

A major labor organization said variable shifts in reality mean "the abolition of the eight-hour day, the disruption of family and social life and the authorization of excessive labor."

Previous Workplace Changes and Economic Context

Last year, the country enacted a six-day working week for certain industries in a bid to boost economic growth.

New legislation, which started at the start of July, permit workers to work up to forty-eight hours in a week as instead of 40.

EU Labor Statistics and Greek Economic Indicators

• Throughout the European Union in the previous year, the longest average hours were observed in Greece (39.8 hours), then Bulgaria (39.0), Poland (38.9) and Romania (38.8).
• The lowest working week in the union is in the Netherlands (32.1), as per Eurostat.
• As of this year, the nation's national base pay stood at €968 a month, ranking it in the bottom group among EU countries.
• Joblessness, which had reached a high at twenty-eight percent during the economic downturn, was eight point one percent in the summer versus an European mean of five point nine percent, data from the statistical office indicate.
• The country is improving since its prolonged financial troubles, which ended in recent years, but wages and living standards remain among the poorest in the EU.