The 8-hour working day and collective agreements will not be abolished, said the Minister of Labor., Kostis Hatzidakis, referring to labor bill which will be put up for consultation this week.
As he said, «the discussion about abolishing the 8-hour working day is surreal. It will not be abolished. Improvements may be needed, but it will not be abolished.» Regarding collective agreements, he argued that the bill «does not mention any abolition of collective agreements. This whole discussion is a blow to democracy. The bill updates labor legislation that has been in force for 40 years.. The needs and structure of society were completely different back then. Today, technology is everywhere,» he said, speaking to ERT.
For the digital card
About digital work card, Kostis Hatzidakis said that «it is already in effect at some banks: Employees report when they arrive at work and when they leave. They report their overtime. We want to extend this to all businesses. It has been included in the «Recovery Fund» this modernisation and digitisation of work. The basis is the 8-hour, 5-day, 40-hour week, and it will remain so. Overtime has never been abolished. Overtime remains, and is paid.: We are simply increasing the number of overtime hours per year, as in other advanced countries.
For the arrangement of working time
Regarding the arrangement of working hours, he stated that «it has been in effect here in Greece since 1990, and indeed under many governments: You can work (within a six-month reference period) up to 10 hours on some days, saving time so that you can work less than your eight-hour day (e.g., six hours) on other days, or take time off. You pay for everything. Or you can work four days, ten hours a day, and take Fridays off. And get paid with the same money, without your salary changing.. A crescendo of hypocrisy from the opposition, claiming that the 8-hour working day is being abolished. Where there are no unions, employees will be able to negotiate with their employers individually for a four-day, 10-hour working week, with Fridays off.. If the employee wants to, they can request it from their employer and come to an agreement.. In many companies, both employers and employees would welcome this. However, there are also companies where it cannot be implemented: in metallurgy, for example, such an arrangement is not possible.
«The number of days of leave also increases if the work is concentrated on other days. This can only be done at the request of the employee. If the employer insists on imposing it under threat of dismissal, then the employee can report the attempted dismissal as unlawful.», emphasized Kostis Hatzidakis.
