Greece introduces 'growth-oriented' six-day working week
Greece implements a controversial six-day working week to enhance productivity due to labor shortages. The measure allows longer hours with extra pay, sparking criticism from unions and concerns about work-life balance.
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Greece has introduced a controversial six-day working week, aiming to boost productivity in response to a shrinking population and a shortage of skilled workers. The measure, part of a broader set of labor laws, allows private businesses providing round-the-clock services to implement a 48-hour working week. Employees in select industries can work an additional two hours a day or an extra eight-hour shift, with a 40% top-up fee added to their daily wage. While the government claims the initiative is growth-oriented and aligns Greece with the rest of Europe, critics, including trade unions, argue that it erodes workers' rights and legal protections. The move has sparked backlash and protests, with opponents expressing concerns about the impact on work conditions and quality of life. Greece's decision contrasts with global trends towards shorter working weeks for better productivity, with countries like Belgium experimenting with a four-day workweek. The Greek workforce already puts in long hours compared to the rest of Europe, and the new measure has raised questions about fairness, especially for pensioners and unemployed youth.
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10 commentsI know for myself that every day I do approximately 1/5th of the total amount of productive work I can do in a week while remaining happy and willing. If my work week were to be increased to 6 days, that amount would decrease to 1/6th, and the total amount of productive work that I can do in a week would very definitely not be going up, in fact I suspect it would be going down because of less unburdened time* for myself.
Here in Belgium, there's also hard upper limits to what you can earn depending on education, and job title. And since I am already making that limit, there is absolutely no chance that I will put in any more effort than the bare minimum to remain at this level.
*: I define unburdened here as time where I am not doing actual productive work, and I'm not doing busywork to fill the hours either. In other words, when I'm at home.
I'm sure this reform will make them come right back!
Yeah instead of raising the minimum wage, capping CEO profit and benefits, taxing the rich more, let the peasants "earn" their bread.
F--k a government this bad.
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