Greece Plans 13-Hour Workdays Under New Labor Bill

Greece is preparing major changes to its labor market as a new bill from the Ministry of Labor moves to parliament this September. Following a period of public consultation, the legislation proposes extended working hours, greater flexibility, and reforms to collective bargaining.

At the heart of the bill is the option for employees to work up to 13 hours per day during certain periods of the year, with a 40% wage increase for the additional 13th hour. The plan also expands the possibility of a four-day workweek, where employees would work longer shifts spread across fewer days.

Other key measures include:

• Allowing part-time employees to work overtime.
• Promoting flexible forms of employment, such as trial contracts of six months and on-demand work agreements, including single-day contracts.
• Introducing flexible start times, with arrival variations of up to two hours, recorded through a digital card system.
• Splitting annual leave into more than two segments, beyond what is currently allowed.
• Exempting overtime bonuses above the legal minimum from insurance contributions.
• Imposing stricter penalties for violence against labor inspectors.

Alongside the bill, the government is advancing a second round of social dialogue with unions and employers regarding collective labor agreements. The goal is to increase coverage from the current 25–30% of workers to the EU target of 80%.

One contentious issue is the threshold requiring more than half of employers in a sector to agree before a collective agreement becomes mandatory. The ministry is considering lowering it from 50% +1 to 40%, as well as creating a permanent mechanism for expanding contracts.

Despite progress, significant disagreements remain. Unions, supported by some employer groups such as small business associations, are pushing for a return to pre-crisis rules and the restoration of a national collective agreement to set minimum wages.

Source: Tovima.com