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Law 5053/2023 was published in the Official Government Gazette (A' 158/26.09.2023) introducing simplifications of procedures in the ERGANI information system (P.S. ERGANI II) and incorporating directive (EU) 2019/1152 for transparent and predictable conditions. The legislative provisions contain indicatively the following:
New digital information procedures ERGANI II
1.P.S. ERGANI II shall include a procedure, according to which employers, both before hiring and before any change in the terms of the employment relationship, will post the basic terms of employment and individual employment contract. For the validity of the basic terms of employment and for the posting of the individual employment contract, it is required that they be co-signed by the employee manually or with an approved electronic signature or with a digital certificate through the Unified Digital Portal (gov.gr) or with acceptance by the employee through the "MyErgani" information system.
2. Employers, who have joined the digital work card system, have the option not to pre- register in the P.S. ERGANI II the changes of working hours or the organization of working time or overtime work before the start of their implementation. However, if in case of control by the competent bodies of the Independent Labor Inspection Authority, the marking of the digital work card is not identified with the actual employment, a fine €10,500 per employee shall be imposed on the employer.
3. The employee’s non justified absence from work for a period of more than 5 consecutive working days can be considered as a voluntary departure, provided that an additional period of 5 consecutive working days has previously passed since his mandatory notification by his employer, which is posted in P.S. ERGANI II and is proven in any suitable written way. In this case, the employer is obliged, on the next working day after the end of the second fortnight, to announce the employee’s voluntary departure to the P.S. ERGANI II, without requiring the employee's signature.
If the employer does not comply with the obligations of notice of voluntary departure within the deadline, the employment contract is considered to have been terminated at the initiative of the employer.
Working time limits
1. Businesses of continuous operation with
a system of alternating shifts as well as businesses that are not by their nature of continuous operation, but it is possible to operate between Monday to Saturday on a 24 hours basis, with a system of alternating shifts, and in which the employees are employed on a five-day weekly working system, in exceptional cases, are allowed to employ these workers on the 6th day of the week. The employment of employees, on the 6th day, may not exceed 8 hours and is paid with the daily wage paid for that day, increased by 40%.
2. It is now possible to implement a working time arrangement system following the initiative of the employer and following an agreement between employer and employee and it is provided that the termination of the employment contract is prohibited on the grounds that the employee did not agree to the employer's proposal to implement such a system.
3. Parallel employment to a second employer is allowed, and it is prohibited to enter into agreements whereby the employee is restricted from providing work to other employers outside of working hours, unless justified by objective reasons, such as health and safety, the protection of the business privacy, working in competing businesses or avoiding conflicts of interest. In such case, the employee's monthly pensionable earnings are increased accordingly.
Directive (EU) 2019/1152: Transparent and predictable working conditions
1. The employer and the employee may, when concluding an employment contract of indefinite duration, agree on a trial period of up to 6 months. A trial period can also be agreed in a fixed-term employment contract which cannot exceed 1/4 of the total employment period, with a maximum limit, in any case, of 6 months.
2. The list of basic working conditions for which the employer has an obligation to inform the employee accordingly is updated.
3. Zero hour contracts provisions are introduced, for the validity of which it is necessary to provide for a minimum number of paid working hours, which may not fall short of 1/4 of the agreed total number of hours. If at any time prior to the commencement of work the employer cancels its assignment, the employee is entitled to compensation corresponding to the hourly wages of the hours of work that were not assigned to him.
Basic salary and seniority benefits
From 1.1.2024 onwards, the suspension of the validity of provisions, which provide for increases in wages or daily wages, with the only condition that a specific working time has passed is lifted.
From 1.1.2027 onwards, if the unemployment rate exceeds 10%, and until it is below 10%, the validity of this provision shall be automatically suspended.
Protection of workers in cases of natural disasters and extraordinary weather phenomena
In the event of natural disasters or extraordinary weather phenomena, to deal with which extraordinary measures are taken by the competent authorities, in particular measures concerning the mandatory evacuation or the preventive removal of citizens from specific areas, the employers of the businesses operating in them are obliged to comply with otherwise they face administrative and criminal sanctions.