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The Greek parliament has given the green light a disputed labor reform that permits 13-hour work shifts, in the face of fierce opposition and countrywide strike actions.

Government officials asserted the measure will modernize Greek labor regulations, but critics from the left-wing faction described it as a "legislative monstrosity."

Main Provisions of the Recently Passed Labor Law

Under the newly enacted legislation, yearly overtime is capped at one hundred and fifty hours, while the regular 40-hour week stays unchanged.

Officials insists that the extended shift is voluntary, only affects the business sector, and can exclusively be used for up to thirty-seven days each year.

Political Backing and Resistance

Thursday's ballot was backed by MPs from the ruling centre-right political group, with the centre-left faction – now the primary opposition – rejecting the bill, while the progressive group did not vote.

Worker organizations have staged two general strikes demanding the law's repeal recently that brought transportation and services to a stop.

Government Justification and Worker Protections

A senior official defended the bill, claiming the reforms align national legislation with modern labor-market conditions, and accused critics of misinforming the citizens.

The laws will give employees the option to accept extra work with the same employer for increased compensation, while ensuring they will not be dismissed for declining overtime.

This complies with EU working-time regulations, which limit the average workweek to forty-eight hours counting overtime but permit adjustments over 12 months, according to the government.

Opposition Viewpoints and Union Reactions

However, critics have charged the government of eroding workers' rights and "pushing the nation back to a medieval work era." They say local employees currently work longer hours than most Europeans while receiving lower pay and still "face financial difficulties."

The public-sector union 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 Financial Background

Last year, the country introduced a six-day work schedule for specific industries in a bid to boost economic growth.

New laws, which started at the beginning of July, allow workers to work up to forty-eight hours in a workweek as opposed to forty.

European Work Data and Greek Financial Indicators

• Throughout the EU in the previous year, the highest average hours were recorded 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 (32.1), according to EU statistics.
• As of January 2025, the nation's national base pay stood at €968 a month, placing it in the bottom group among European nations.
• Unemployment, which had peaked at twenty-eight percent during the economic downturn, was 8.1% in the summer compared with an EU average of 5.9%, figures from the statistical office indicate.
• The country is improving since its decade-long debt crisis, which concluded in 2018, but wages and living standards remain among the lowest in the EU.