Global Compliance Desk – Greece

Greece: Implements EU Directive on Transparent and Predictable Working Condition

On September 26, 2023, Greece passed Law no. 5053/2023, in order to implement the EU Directive 2019/1152 on transparent and predictable working conditions. Some of the noteworthy provisions are:

Notification of Terms of Employment

Employees must be notified of their basic terms of employment within one week from the commencement of employment, in written or electronic form (provided that an electronic copy can be saved and printed and the employer retains evidence of delivery). The basic terms of employment shall include the parties’ identities, the place of work, the position and scope of work, the starting and end date of employment, the duration and terms of the probationary period, the employee’s salary and working hours, and schedule, duration of paid leave entitlement, remuneration entitlement, any shift changes, overtime pay, and duration and, benefits employees are entitled to via social security.

Protective Measure on Minimum Predictability of Work

When the employee’s working time schedule is entirely or mostly unforeseeable, the employee is obliged to accept employment by the employer, only when the following two conditions are cumulatively met:

• • The work is provided within predetermined reference hours and days, which the employer must notify the employee.
  • The employee has been notified by the employer of the assignment of work in writing or by text message via mobile phone (SMS) or, by e-mail or in another convenient way, within a reasonable time that cannot be less than 24 hours before starting work, except for the cases that objectively justify a shorter notice period, which the employer communicates to the employee. 

If at any time after the notification and in any case before taking up the work the employer cancels its assignment, the employee is entitled to compensation corresponding to the hourly wages of the working hours that were not assigned to the employee. 

Multiple Employments 

The new law allows an employee to have more than one employer, provided that the legal provisions on working hours and overtime are respected.

Registration of Change of Working Hours and Overtime in the “ERGANI II” Information System

The new law provides incentives for businesses to use digital employment cards instead of pre-declaring changes to employees’ working hours and overtime through Ergani II.

Employers, whose businesses or holdings have joined the electronic working time measurement system using the digital work card for their employees with dependent work, may not register in the Information System “ERGANI II” (P.S. ERGANI II) the changes or modification of working hours or the organization of working time or overtime work before the start of their implementation.

If there is a change or modification of the working hours or the organization of working time or overtime work by the employee and this is not identified by the marking of the digital work card, a fine of 10,500 euros per employee is imposed on the employer by the competent auditing bodies, on whose digital card the above identification is not possible.

Creation of Digital Platform and Simplification of ERGANI II Information Process

A digital platform named “REBRAIN GREECE” is being created in the Information System “ERGANI II” (P.S. ERGANI II) of the Ministry of Labor and Social Security for the development of a mechanism for strengthening the talents and networking of scientific workers, who live inside and outside Greece, with jobs in highly skilled and specialized occupations offered by private sector companies operating in Greece.

Posting of Basic Terms of Employment and Individual Employment Contract in the “ERGANI II” 

Every employer, who hires an employee with a dependent work relationship, is obliged to post electronically in the Information System “ERGANI II” (P.S. ERGANI II) of the Ministry of Labor and Social Security, before the start of work, the employee’s basic working conditions and the written individual employment contract, if it exists.

Employment agreements must be co-signed by the employee in one of the following ways: by wet signature, by using an approved electronic signature, by using a digital certification issued through gov.gr, or by approving the terms on the MyErgani portal.

Procedure for Submitting to the “ERGANI II” Information System Cases of Termination of the Employment Contract

A new, more simplified process is provided for the termination of the employment contract. If an employee is absent without justification for more than 5 consecutive days and receives a written notice from the employer, uploaded to the Ergani II platform, their absence will be treated as grounds for dismissal if they do not return to work within 5 days from the date of the employer’s notice.   

Employment on the 6th day in Organizations of Continuous Operation that Apply a System of 5-day workweek

In cases of organizations in continuous operation with a system of alternating shifts, in which the employees are employed in a 5-day weekly work, their employment on the 6th day of the week may be allowed, as long as it is registered by the employer, in the Information System “ERGANI II” (P.S. ERGANI II) before the employee takes up duty.

The employment of employees, during the additional day, may not exceed 8 hours. During this day, overtime and overtime work by the employee is not allowed. The 6th day’s work shall be remunerated with regular pay and an additional premium of 40%. 

Employer’s Takeaway – Employers should take reasonable steps to ensure compliance with these provisions at the earliest, to strengthen work and increase employment  with transparent and predictable working conditions