OVERTIME WORK – OVERTIME HOURS

Overtime work – overtime hours: Employment beyond the contractual and up to the statutory weekly working schedule is considered overtime work, while employment beyond the statutory working schedule constitutes overtime hours. In other words, employment beyond the contractual and up to the statutory weekly working schedule is regarded as overtime work (yperergasia). Overtime hours (yperoria), or overtime employment or overtime labour, is that which is provided beyond the maximum statutory working schedule.

The statutory working schedule is the one determined by a provision of law or by an administrative act issued under statutory authorisation, and constitutes the maximum limit of daily or weekly work, while the contractual working schedule is the one determined by collective labour agreements, arbitration awards, work regulations or individual employment contracts. Overtime work – overtime hours are analysed as follows:

1. OVERTIME WORK (YPERERGASIA):

Overtime work means that work which is provided beyond the contractually defined weekly schedule (40-hour week) and up to the completion of the statutory working schedule, namely the 48 hours for six-day employment or the 45 hours for five-day employment.

For each hour of overtime work, the employee is entitled to the hourly wage paid, increased by 20%. No authorisation from the Labour Inspectorate is required for overtime work to take place; however, following the amendment of the legislation (Article 36 of Law 4488/2017), as of 01.09.2018 every employer is obliged to declare overtime work in the ERGANI system, at the latest before it is carried out. Hours of work performed on the 6th day of the week (Saturday for the company) or on Sunday are not counted as overtime work.

 

2. OVERTIME HOURS (YPERORIA):

Overtime hours mean the employment of the worker which exceeds the time limits of the statutory weekly and daily working schedule. That is, overtime hours are deemed to be employment beyond 48 hours per week and 8 hours per day (for employees under the six-day employment system) and beyond 45 hours per week and 9 hours per day (for employees under the five-day system). Any work in excess of 9 hours per day is always taken into account as overtime hours (whether lawful or unlawful), because in such a case there is an excess of the statutory daily schedule, irrespective of whether there is at the same time also an excess of the statutory weekly schedule of 48 and 45 hours respectively.

As a matter of principle, overtime hours are prohibited and any relevant agreement between employer and employee is null and void. However, the law itself permits the provision of overtime employment in specific cases and provided that the substantive and procedural conditions are met:

• The existence of a specific reason justifying it
• No exceeding of a maximum limit of hours set on a daily and annual basis (in accordance with what is provided in Article 58 of Law 4808/2021, 3 hours per day and 150 hours per year)
• Declaration of the overtime hours, through the ERGANI Information System (FORM E8), to the competent Labour Inspectorate before or at the time they are carried out (Article 36 of Law 4488/2017).

In the case of lawful overtime hours (where the aforementioned conditions for their performance have been observed), the employee is entitled, for each hour and up to the completion of 150 hours per year, to remuneration equal to the hourly wage paid, increased by 40%, while remuneration for lawful overtime employment beyond 150 hours per year is 60% on the hourly wage paid. The possibility of employing workers beyond 150 hours per year requires a decision of the competent body of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (Director-General of Labour Relations, Health and Safety at Work and Labour Integration), only in cases of work of an urgent nature, the execution of which is deemed absolutely imperative and does not admit of postponement.

It is emphasised that, in any event, the weekly working time of employees may not exceed, on average over a reference period of at most 4 months, 48 hours, including overtime hours and overtime work.

In the case of unlawful overtime hours (that is, where the conditions imposed by the legislation are not observed), the employee is entitled for each hour of unlawful overtime to receive compensation equal to the hourly wage paid, increased by 120%.

Overtime work – Overtime hours: How Saturday is paid

Pursuant to Law 3846/2010, work provided on the sixth day of the week, in breach of the five-day working system, irrespective of the sanctions provided for, is paid at the daily wage paid, increased by 30%. Persons employed in hotel and catering businesses are not subject to this provision.

• See also article Termination of Employment Contract
• See also article Severance Pay
• See also article Modification of Terms of Employment
• See also article Suspension of Work (Right of Retention)
• See also article Annual Statutory Leave
• See also article Employee Remuneration
• See also article Obligations of Employers

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ON OVERTIME WORK – OVERTIME HOURS

1. What is the difference between overtime work and overtime hours?

These are two different forms of additional employment with different surcharges. Overtime work (yperergasia) is work beyond the contractual 40-hour week and up to the completion of the statutory schedule, namely 45 hours for the five-day system or 48 hours for the six-day system. It is paid at the hourly wage paid, increased by 20%. Overtime hours (yperoria) are employment beyond the statutory weekly schedule or beyond 9 hours per day on the five-day system (8 on the six-day system). Lawful overtime hours are paid with a 40% surcharge, whereas unlawful ones with a 120% surcharge. The distinction is decisive for the amount of the sums claimed.

2. My employer is not paying me for overtime hours, what do I do?

The employee may claim the amounts owed in two ways that operate complementarily. First, by filing a complaint with the Labour Inspectorate, which summons the employer to a labour dispute and may impose administrative fines. In parallel or subsequently, the employee files a lawsuit before the competent Single-Member Court of First Instance for an award of accrued earnings, with the statutory surcharges and interest. In case of systematic non-payment, the right to suspend work (right of retention) is also granted, or even the invocation of a detrimental modification of the terms of employment. Before any procedure is initiated, careful recording of the actual working hours is required.

3. How do I prove the overtime hours I worked?

Evidence is the critical factor in any case of claiming overtime hours. The principal means of proof is the ERGANI Information System, where the employer is obliged to declare every hour of overtime work and overtime hours before they are carried out. If no declaration has been made, the overtime is deemed unlawful and the surcharge reaches 120%. Other useful evidence includes the digital work card, e-mail messages, shift schedules, entry-exit records, witness statements from colleagues, payroll slips and bank statements. It is advisable for the employee to keep their own log of working hours from the outset.

4. What is the limitation period for overtime claims?

The employee’s claims arising from accrued earnings, which include overtime hours, are as a rule barred by limitation after five years from the end of the year within which the claim arose. This means that the employee may claim overtime hours going back five years, but no further. Delay therefore costs money. The filing of a lawsuit in court interrupts the limitation period. If a case is pending before the Labour Inspectorate, that alone does not necessarily interrupt the limitation period, which is why parallel court action is recommended where the amounts at stake are significant.

5. Can my employer dismiss me because I refuse to do overtime hours?

Overtime hours require the consent of the employee and compliance with the statutory conditions. Refusal to perform unlawful overtime hours does not constitute a lawful ground for dismissal. If the employer proceeds to terminate the contract on account of such refusal, the dismissal may be characterised as abusive and annulled by the courts, with the consequent obligation to pay default wages. The position is different where the statutory conditions for overtime employment are met and there is an exceptional need of the business. Each case is examined on the basis of the specific facts, the contract and the manner in which the overtime was requested.

6. What is the role of the lawyer in claiming overtime hours?

Our office initially undertakes a detailed calculation of the amounts owed on the basis of the actual schedule, the hourly wage and the statutory surcharges of 20%, 40%, 60% or 120%, depending on the nature of the employment. It then gathers evidence from ERGANI, payroll and other sources, files a complaint with the Labour Inspectorate and represents the employee in the labour dispute. Where required, it brings a lawsuit before the competent Single-Member Court of First Instance and an application for interim measures where the conditions are met. At the same time, it examines whether there is a detrimental modification of terms or an abusive dismissal, and assesses the possibility of a settlement before judicial proceedings are advanced.