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Government Building

The Greek parliament has given the green light a disputed labor reform that authorizes 13-hour working days, despite fierce resistance and nationwide strike actions.

Government officials stated the measure will update the country's labor regulations, but critics from the progressive faction labeled it as a "harmful law."

Key Provisions of the Recently Passed Labor Law

Under the freshly approved legislation, yearly overtime is capped at 150 hours, while the standard 40-hour workweek continues as before.

Officials maintains that the extended workday is elective, solely affects the private sector, and can only be applied for up to 37 days annually.

Political Backing and Resistance

The recent vote was supported by lawmakers from the ruling centre-right political group, with the moderate faction – currently the primary opposition – rejecting the legislation, while the progressive group abstained.

Labor unions have organized two general strikes calling for the bill's withdrawal recently that brought transportation and public services to a stop.

Official Defense and Worker Safeguards

The Labor Minister defended the bill, saying the changes bring in line national laws with modern labor-market conditions, and accused critics of misinforming the public.

These regulations will provide workers the choice to accept extra work with the same employer for 40% higher pay, while guaranteeing they will not be dismissed for declining overtime.

The measure follows European Union labor rules, which cap the average week to 48 hours counting extra hours but permit adjustments over a year, according to the administration.

Opposition Perspectives and Labor Reactions

But, opposition parties have charged the government of weakening workers' rights and "pushing the country back to a labor middle age." They say local employees currently work longer hours than most Europeans while receiving lower pay and still "face financial difficulties."

A major labor organization stated flexible working hours in reality mean "the abolition of the eight-hour day, the destruction of family and social life and the authorization of excessive labor."

Previous Workplace Changes and Economic Context

Last year, the country introduced a six-day working week for specific sectors in a bid to stimulate economic growth.

Recent legislation, which came into effect at the start of the summer, allow employees to work up to 48 hours in a week as opposed to 40.

EU Labor Data and National Economic Metrics

• Throughout the EU in the previous year, the highest average hours were observed in Greece (39.8 hours), then Bulgaria (39.0), Poland (38.9) and Romania.
• The lowest work hours in the union is in the Netherlands, according to EU statistics.
• As of this year, the nation's national base pay was nine hundred sixty-eight euros a month, ranking it in the lower tier among EU countries.
• Unemployment, which had reached a high at twenty-eight percent during the financial crisis, was 8.1% in the summer versus an EU average of five point nine percent, figures from the statistical office indicate.
• Greece is recovering since its prolonged debt crisis, which ended in recent years, but salaries and quality of life continue to be among the poorest in the European Union.