Foreign Workers Rights in Greece

Greece's Labor Laws Protect all Workers Rights

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Get to know your rights in Greece or it will cost you money, benefits, and you will be taken advantage of, the following will keep you informed.

Workers rights are protected by: a) the Greek Constitution; b) the Greek Civil Code; c) laws, legislative decrees, presidential decrees and ministerial decisions; and d) case law.

An employment contract is a contract used in labor law to ensure rights and responsibilities between parties. The contract is between an "employee" and an "employer". The contract is the only way to claim your employment rights (including your salary, working hours and other benefits).

There are 2 types of contracts depending on the duration: The fixed term contract (duration is specified and agreed in advance) and the open-ended contract (with no time limit). There is also full-time employment (8 or 6 hours per day /40 hours per week) and part-time employment (less than 8 hours per day /less than 40 hours per week).

Working contracts might be written or oral, but in any case your employer must declare it to Ministry of Labour via Ergani. However, it is better to have a written contract, as an oral one might be difficult to enforce. 

A valid written contract must be signed by both the employer and the employees (1 copy should be available for the employee). Before you sign a contract, it is very important to read it first and be sure that all information is included.

A contract usually includes:

• The full identity of the employer and the employee
• The place of work
• The duration of the employment contract
• The duration of the regular daily and weekly employment
• The kind of work that the employee will provide
• The salary that will be paid for their services
• All the kinds of remuneration the employee is entitled to
• Any amendment to the terms of the employment contract

Working Hours

A typical full-time job includes:

• 40 hours for 5-day work (8 hours/day) or 40 hours for 6-day work (6 ½ hours/day). 
• 40-48 hours is called overwork, and an extra 20% is added to the normal hourly wage for every additional hour.
• 48+ and up to 120 hours (per year) is called overtime and is allowed only for specific activities that are considered to be urgent. 
• An extra 40% is added to the normal hourly wage for every additional hour.
• 120+ hours of overtime work per year are paid with the hourly wages, plus 60%.
• Work on Sundays and official Holidays are entitled to an extra charge of 75% of the hourly wage, and work at night, to an extra 25%.

However, recent regulations have allowed employers in some companies to opt for longer daily shifts or extended work hours up to 48 per week. Particularly, Greece's new law allows employers in certain companies that offer 24/7 services and to companies which are not by their nature of continuous operation, but which may operate on Monday to Saturday for 24 hours, on a shift system (3shifts per day of 8 hours each), to require employees to work a sixth day. In return, employees receive an extra 40% of their daily wage on that day. For example, if a worker earns €100 daily, they could now earn an additional €40, increasing their weekly earnings from €500 to €640.

This law isn't mandatory, but if a company chooses to adopt it, it must apply consistently to all employees. Employers must inform employees at least 24 hours before any new shift starts, and no additional overtime beyond the allowed eight hours is permitted on the extra working day.

Employees are also allowed to work for two or more employers for up to 13 hours in total per day. In any case, according to the law, the weekly working time, including overtime, may not exceed an average of 48 hours per week over a period of four months. Notably, Greece's food and tourism sectors are excluded from this law, as they have traditionally operated under different regulations, as stated by the Athens Labour Unions Organization (EKA).

Salary

Payment is generally made after the work is performed. The usual is once a month, on the first days of each month. Common calculation of a salary (for a full-time job): 12 monthly instalments plus 1 salary as a Christmas bonus, ½ salary as an Easter Bonus, and ½ salary as a holiday bonus.

Minimum wage

If you are hired as an employee in Greece and work full time (40 h/5 days), the minimum wage starts from 830 euros per month. If you are a worker and you agree to get paid by the day, the minimum daily payment you can get starts from 37.07 euros.

In both cases, depending on your previous working experience in the same employer, the minimum monthly wage and minimum daily payment rise. After 2017 all employers have an obligation to deposit their wage and the daily payment in a bank account.

The above-mentioned amounts are before tax and social security deductions. This is called gross salary and is the one that is mentioned inside your contract. The salary you receive in your bank account is called net salary. 

Payroll Certificate / Pay slip

The Payroll Certificate is a document that is provided by the employer to the employee (usually at the end of every month or the beginning of the next) and indicates the gross amount of the salary, the taxes withheld, and the net amount of the salary. This must be signed by the employee and be kept as a copy.

Annual leave

The right to annual vacation and holidays is protected by Greek labor law. The days of leave you are entitled still depend on the duration (months) you have worked at the same employer. The following example is based on a full-time job:

• 12 months of employment -> 20 days of vacation leave
• Second year of employment -> 21 days of vacation leave
• Third year or more -> 22 days of vacation leave
• More than 10 years -> 25 days of vacation leave
• The employer is obliged to grant the annual legal vacation to the employee before the termination of the year, even if the employee has not asked for it.

Sick leave

When you take leave because you are sick (sick leave), your employer must give you sick pay.

• For the first three days, you are out sick, your employer must pay you at least half your regular daily pay.
• If you are sick for more than three days, you must go through the Greek National Health System to get paid. Ask your human resources department for more information or you need to fill out a form (available also online) and complete the process to receive your salary for the days you have been absent.

Maternity Leave

Female employees are entitled to 17 weeks of maternity leave which is broken down to 8 weeks before the expected date of childbirth and 9 weeks thereafter. The leave is paid usually by the minimum wage. A working mother is entitled for a period of 30 months as of the end of maternity leave, either to come to work 1 hour later or depart 1 hour earlier each day.

Alternatively, you can agree with your employer to work for 2 hours less per day for the first 12 months and 1 hour less for the next 6 months or you can receive an approximately 3 months’ continuous paid leave.

Maternity allowance

For 119 days after birth. To get this, you need to have formally worked for 200 days in the last two years before childbirth and not be working when the allowance is paid.

Birth allowance

This allowance is provided only once. You must have worked for at least 50 days from March 1st of every year and for 12 months to receive this.

Ergosimo (Εργόσημο)

A type of payment and insurance for employees who are not employed in stable employer like housekeeping services, gardening, babysitting and transporting children, providing support to people with disabilities or the elderly or people with mobility difficulties, repairing that is not related to constructions, private lessons, beauty services, cleaning and gardening services of communal areas, distribution of commercial flyers and brochures promotion of facial and body products, promotion of consumer products.

Ergosimo is issued as a check and corresponds to a specific monetary value, not less than 5 euros, which includes the amount of the employee's remuneration and the amount of the EFKA contribution. The issue and redemption are done by the certified bodies (ELTA (post office), banks, KEP and EFKA departments). The Employer or his authorized representative is exclusively obliged to issue it. The trademark must be redeemed by the employee within four (4) months from the date of its issue.

Compensation in case of dismissal/when fired

• No compensation is paid to the employee for less than 12 months of work.
• Compensation is limited to the half sum if there is a release notice before
• Within the compensation dismissal, the vacations payment is included
• Compensation is always calculated and paid with the employee’s gross earnings
• Dismissal is not allowed:
• When the employee is on a regular leave
• When the employee is on maternity leave
• When the employee is pregnant
• For 18 months after having given birth
• For legitimate trade union action
• Due to non-acceptance of an employer proposal to modify full-time employment to part or to occasional employment.
• The dismissal is invalid if it is announced verbally to the employee or if the employer does not pay the compensation or does not reimburse it entirely.
• In case of a fixed-term contract, this is automatically terminated on the last date of employment. The employer is not obliged to compensate the employee when leaving. However, a certificate of contract termination is given.

Health insurance

Once you have a job, you must get an National Insurance Number (AMA Number) by EFKA.

Learn more: Getting a National Insurance Registration Number (AMA)

Pensions

Pensions in Greece are funded by workers’ and employers’ social security contributions.

Pensions depend on the number of working days (ensima/stamps). When you work full-time in Greece, you earn 25 ensima/stamps a month. These ensima/stamps are added up throughout your working life. When you reach the minimum retirement age and the minimum number of ensima/stamps, you can get your pension.

Your employer should keep track of your stamps for you.

Documentation

Your employer must provide you with a signed “declaration of employment” form on your first day. If you don’t get one, ask. Your employer keeps a copy, and you keep a copy.

Your employer must stamp all your official documents with the company stamp.

If you have any more questions or are unsure about the information provided by your employer, please contact a lawyer or the Labour Inspection Corps.

How can I check if my employer has officially declared my contract?

Ergani is the digital platform of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs for employees. This platform registers all basic actions concerning employee-employer relations, including recruitment, departures, and employment contracts.

Through Ergani, you can check if your employer has registered your contract, verify whether the terms of the working contract have been declared as agreed, see the details of each employment relationship, view the employers you have worked for, and access all the declarations (forms) submitted by employers. To access Ergani, you will need your Taxisnet username and password.

The information on the platform can be searched through the below options:

My Employers: 

This option allows you to access all the employment relationships with the employers you have worked for, provided they have been registered in ERGANI. You can also view the latest recorded data of each employment relationship as recorded in ERGANI.

Declarations: This option lets you search all the declarations (forms) submitted to ERGANI by employers, classified into the following categories:

- Start-End of Employment- Employment Changes

- Employment

- Change of Employment

- Change of Employment Status

- Special Employment Schemes

- COVID-19 Measures

- Other

What are my rights in case of a work accident?

A work accident is defined as an accident that occurs during your work or outside the place and time of work but is related to your job. Examples include accidents while commuting to or from work, performing a task in the interest of the employer, or suffering from a disease caused by working conditions.

In case of a work accident, your employer is obliged to declare it within 24 hours to the relevant Labour Inspectorate, the nearest police station, and the victim's insurance institution.

If you experience a work accident, you have the right to:

Medical and hospital care

Sickness allowance

Depending on the severity of the accident, you might also be entitled to a disability pension and compensation