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Greece's parliament has ratified a contentious work legislation that permits 13-hour work shifts, in the face of strong resistance and nationwide protests.

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

Key Elements of the Recently Passed Work Legislation

Under the newly enacted legislation, annual overtime is limited at one hundred and fifty hours, while the standard forty-hour week continues as before.

Officials insists that the longer shift is elective, solely applies to the business sector, and can only be implemented for up to thirty-seven days each year.

Political Backing and Opposition

Thursday's vote was backed by MPs from the governing centre-right party, with the centre-left party – now the primary resistance – voting against the legislation, while the progressive group did not vote.

Worker organizations have organized multiple protests calling for the law's repeal recently that halted transportation and services to a standstill.

Official Defense and Employee Safeguards

A senior official defended the legislation, claiming the reforms bring in line national legislation with modern employment conditions, and alleged opposition leaders of misinforming the citizens.

These regulations will give workers the option to accept extra work with the current company for 40% higher compensation, while guaranteeing they cannot be dismissed for declining extra hours.

The measure complies with EU working-time rules, which limit the average week to forty-eight hours including extra hours but allow adjustments over a year, as stated by the administration.

Opposition Perspectives and Union Responses

However, opposition parties have charged the administration of eroding workers' rights and "pushing the country back to a labor middle age." They say local workers already 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 end of the eight-hour day, the destruction of family and social life and the legalisation of over-exploitation."

Recent Workplace Changes and Financial Context

In 2024, Greece introduced a six-day working week for specific industries in a attempt to boost the economy.

Recent laws, which came into effect at the start of July, allow employees to work up to 48 hours in a workweek as opposed to forty.

European Labor Statistics and Greek Economic Metrics

• Throughout the EU in 2024, the longest working weeks were observed in the Hellenic Republic, followed by Bulgaria, Poland and Romania (38.8).
• The lowest work hours in the bloc is in the Netherlands, as per EU statistics.
• As of this year, Greece's official base pay stood at nine hundred sixty-eight euros a month, ranking it in the bottom group among EU countries.
• Joblessness, which had peaked at twenty-eight percent during the economic downturn, was eight point one percent in August versus an European mean of 5.9%, data from Eurostat show.
• The country is recovering since its prolonged financial troubles, which concluded in 2018, but wages and quality of life continue to be among the lowest in the EU.