Greece introduces major labor law reform

Greece has recently passed a major labor law reform, bringing significant changes to the organization of work. Key measures include greater flexibility in how annual leave may be taken, a new entitlement extending nine weeks of maternity leave to adoptive and foster mothers of children up to eight years old and a new option for a permanent four-day workweek. The changes took effect from 17 October 2025.

Background

The changes have been introduced under Law 5239/2025 (the “Law”), which entered into force upon its publication in the Government Gazette on 17 October 2025.

Key details

The following sets out the most relevant changes for employers to note:

Greater flexibility in annual leave

The Law introduces greater flexibility in statutory employer-paid annual leave. Previously, employees were restricted to taking annual leave in a single continuous period (or, upon request, two periods with at least one period comprising two consecutive weeks).

Under the Law, employees may now split annual leave into more than two periods per year, subject to submission of a written request and employer approval. At least one period must include six consecutive working days for a six-day workweek or five consecutive working days for a five-day workweek.

Additionally, employers are now able to report granted leave electronically to the government’s ERGANI II information system within the calendar month following the month in which it was granted, where previously they were required to report granted leave up to one hour after commencement of the leave.

Maternity leave for adoptive and foster mothers of children up to eight years old

Pregnant employees are entitled to 17 weeks of maternity leave, comprising eight weeks before the birth and nine weeks after the birth, which is paid as follows:

• Employees with at least 200 days of qualifying social insurance contributions within the two years prior to the birth are entitled to a maternity allowance from social insurance equivalent to 50% of salary, based on the employee’s insurance contribution class.

• The employer must pay the employee their salary for the first month of maternity leave (or half a month for an employee with less than one year of service), minus any allowance paid by social insurance. For the remaining duration of maternity leave, the Public Employment Service (DYPA) supplements the social insurance allowance up to the employee’s regular salary.

Under the Law, the nine weeks of post-childbirth maternity leave, and the corresponding benefits, allowances, and protection against termination, have now been extended to adoptive mothers of children up to eight years old (previously six years old) and foster mothers of children up to eight years old (previously not covered).

Four-day workweek

For the first time, the option of a four-day workweek is introduced on a permanent basis (previously only permitted for a maximum period of six months). Employers and employees may mutually agree to establish a four-day workweek with 10 working hours per day, without any reduction in pay. This measure is particularly beneficial for working parents who can choose, for example, to work Monday through Thursday and take Friday off, improving their work-life balance.

Overtime framework reform – 13-hour workdays

Under the revised overtime framework, the maximum daily overtime has increased from three to four hours, while the annual cap remains at 150 hours, and the weekly limit at 48 hours.

In practice, an employee working a five-day workweek may now consent to work up to 13 hours a day: eight hours of regular work, one hour of overwork, and four hours of overtime. Under Greek labor law, overwork refers to the first additional hour worked per day beyond regular working hours (up to five hours per week for employees working a five-day workweek), while overtime refers to hours worked beyond both regular working hours and overwork hours. Overwork is paid at a 20% premium and overtime is paid at a 40% premium.

The additional overtime hours must be offset by a corresponding reduction on other days to ensure the 48-hour weekly limit is respected. 13-hour working days may be applied up to 37.5 days per year. Employees who decline overtime retain full protection from dismissal.

Digital recordkeeping

As records such as terms of employment forms, pay slips, staff rosters, leave books, and overtime logs are maintained electronically in the ERGANI II information system, the Law has abolished the obligation for employers to keep printed versions of such records.

Employer action: ACT

Given the scale of the reforms, employers are encouraged to work with their legal counsel to review the Law in its entirety to determine the specific changes applicable to them and assess their impact, especially on their workforce planning models.

Employers should review and update their internal policies and procedures, as well as employee handbooks and contracts, if they have not already done so, to ensure compliance. They should also coordinate with their human resources service providers on the necessary updates to be made to existing processes and systems, including ERGANI II reporting.

Employers should also monitor the release of additional regulations and regulatory guidance.

Written in collaboration with Irida Noutsou of Kremalis Law Firm

Further Information

Four-day weeks and 13-hour days: Greece introduces major labour law reform | Ius Laboris (opens a new window)

Law 5239/2025 Fair Work for Everyone: Simplification of Legislation – Support for Workers – Protection in Practice – Pension Adjustments | National Printing House (opens a new window)