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The Greek parliament has given the green light a disputed work legislation that permits 13-hour work shifts, despite strong opposition and countrywide strike actions.

The administration stated the law will update Greek labor regulations, but critics from the progressive faction described it as a "regulatory disaster."

Key Provisions of the New Work Legislation

According to the freshly approved legislation, yearly overtime is capped at one hundred and fifty hours, while the regular forty-hour week continues as before.

The government maintains that the longer shift is elective, solely affects the business sector, and can only be applied for up to thirty-seven days each year.

Parliamentary Backing and Opposition

Thursday's ballot was backed by lawmakers from the ruling conservative political group, with the centre-left party – now the main opposition – rejecting the bill, while the left-wing group did not vote.

Worker organizations have organized multiple protests calling for the bill's withdrawal recently that halted public transport and services to a standstill.

Official Defense and Worker Protections

The Labor Minister defended the legislation, stating the changes bring in line Greek laws with modern labor-market realities, and alleged opposition leaders of misinforming the public.

These regulations will give employees the choice to accept additional hours with the current company for 40% higher pay, while guaranteeing they will not be fired for declining extra hours.

The measure complies with European Union working-time rules, which cap the average week to forty-eight hours including overtime but permit flexibility over a year, according to the government.

Opposition Perspectives and Union Responses

However, critics have accused the government of eroding workers' rights and "driving the nation back to a labor middle age." They say local workers currently work longer hours than most EU citizens while earning less and still "struggle to make ends meet."

A major labor organization said variable shifts in practice mean "the abolition of the standard workday, the disruption of family and social life and the legalisation of over-exploitation."

Previous Labor Reforms and Financial Background

Last year, Greece introduced a six-day work schedule for specific industries in a bid to boost the economy.

Recent legislation, which came into effect at the beginning of the summer, permit employees to work up to forty-eight hours in a workweek as instead of 40.

European Labor Data and National Financial Indicators

• Across the EU in 2024, the longest working weeks were observed in Greece (39.8 hours), followed by Bulgaria, Poland (38.9) and Romania (38.8).
• The shortest working week in the union is in the Netherlands, as per EU statistics.
• Starting January 2025, the nation's national base pay was nine hundred sixty-eight euros a month, placing it in the bottom group among EU countries.
• Unemployment, which had peaked at 28% during the economic downturn, was eight point one percent in August compared with an European mean of 5.9%, data from Eurostat indicate.
• Greece is improving since its decade-long debt crisis, which concluded in 2018, but salaries and living standards continue to be among the poorest in the European Union.