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Government Building

Greece's legislature has given the green light a disputed work legislation that enables extended-length work shifts, despite widespread resistance and countrywide strike actions.

The administration claimed the law will update Greek work laws, but critics from the progressive party described it as a "harmful law."

Main Provisions of the Recently Passed Work Legislation

According to the newly enacted legislation, yearly overtime is capped at one hundred and fifty hours, while the regular forty-hour workweek stays unchanged.

The government emphasizes that the longer shift is optional, only applies to the private sector, and can only be applied for up to 37 days annually.

Parliamentary Support and Opposition

Thursday's ballot was supported by lawmakers from the governing conservative political group, with the centre-left faction – now the primary resistance – rejecting the legislation, while the left-wing party abstained.

Labor unions have organized multiple protests demanding the law's repeal this month that halted transportation and public services to a stop.

Government Defense and Employee Safeguards

The Labor Minister supported the legislation, saying the reforms bring in line national laws with modern employment conditions, and accused opposition leaders of misinforming the citizens.

The laws will provide employees the option to take on extra work with the same employer for 40% higher pay, while guaranteeing they will not be fired for declining extra hours.

The measure complies with EU labor regulations, which limit the average workweek to forty-eight hours including overtime but permit flexibility over 12 months, as stated by the government.

Opposition Perspectives and Union Responses

However, opposition parties have accused the government of weakening employee protections and "driving the country back to a medieval work era." They argue local employees already work longer hours than the majority of Europeans while receiving lower pay and still "face financial difficulties."

The public-sector union stated flexible working hours in practice mean "the end of the standard workday, the destruction of family and social life and the legalisation of over-exploitation."

Previous Workplace Reforms and Economic Context

Last year, Greece enacted a six-day work schedule for certain sectors in a attempt to stimulate economic growth.

New laws, which came into effect at the beginning of the summer, permit employees to work up to 48 hours in a workweek as opposed to forty.

European Labor Data and National Financial Indicators

• Throughout the EU in the previous year, the longest working weeks were recorded in Greece (39.8 hours), followed by Bulgaria, Poland and Romania (38.8).
• The lowest working week in the bloc is in the Netherlands, according to EU statistics.
• Starting this year, Greece's official minimum wage was €968 a month, placing it in the lower tier among European nations.
• Unemployment, which had peaked at 28% during the financial crisis, was 8.1% in the summer versus an European mean of 5.9%, figures from the statistical office show.
• The country is recovering since its prolonged financial troubles, which ended in recent years, but wages and living standards continue to be among the poorest in the European Union.