PASOK President Nikos Androulakis proposes the application of a full-time four-day job, opening a debate on reducing weekly working time to 32 or 35 hours. It argues that the intensive labour model leads to low productivity and wages, trapping the economy into stagnation. PASOK's goal is to increase productivity from 56% of the European average to 75% by the beginning of the next decade. Androuliakis criticizes the Mitsotakis government for its six-day work and 13-hour period, stressing that Greeks work more than any other European people but with the lowest purchasing power.
Analyticalally:
The moment Greece has come out of the crisis and is recording strong growth rates, PASOK proposes...four-day work. And with full pay, which the market and the economy themselves cannot raise.
As the President of PASOK says in his post, this is a practice that is already being piloted in several European countries, with the aim of improving the balance between professional and personal life. In the same context, it raises broader questions about the current working model, especially in view of the tourist season and the Labor Day, wondering whether work will continue to be measured in terms of exhaustion or whether it will be linked to quality, productivity and dignity.
At the same time, it argues that the existing cheap and intensive labour model has exhausted its limits, as it leads to low productivity, limited investment and low wages, trapping the economy into a vicious cycle of stagnation. At the same time, it points out that these conditions make life planning difficult for workers and affect even demographic prospects negatively.
PASOK's proposal includes incentives to apply a weekly working time of 32 or 35 hours with full pay, pointing out that the reduction of hours can serve as a lever for productivity growth, since it is combined with better organisation, skill enhancement and technology utilisation. The aim, according to him, is to increase labour productivity from 56% of the European average to 75% by the beginning of the next decade.
It also criticises the government of Kyriakos Mitsotakis, accusing it of strengthening the intensification of work through measures such as six-day employment and extending the hours. It also argues that insufficient tools such as the Recovery Fund were used to modernise the economy and improve working conditions.
According to the President of PASOK, today's data — with high working time, low productivity and limited purchasing power — They reflect the weaknesses of a model that, as he argues, discredits work rather than upgrade it. In conclusion, it poses the issue as a crucial political and social choice, calling for a change of direction with emphasis on supporting work and especially the new generation.
The post of Nikos Androuliakis
«As thousands of workers are already entering the demanding rhythms of the tourist season, and with Labor Day approaching, the question becomes more topical than ever: What value do we give to work today? Will we continue to measure it with endless working hours, pressure and exhaustion or will we link it to quality, productivity, perspective and dignity?
When the daily life of workers leaves no room for even elementary life planning, how can we talk about demographic regeneration? How can young people become masters of their future? PASOK's answer is clear: The model of cheap and exhausting work is not simply outdated – it is a low productivity trap. It encapsulates the economy into a vicious circle: low investment, low productivity, low wages, limited innovation and constant stagnation. A circle that denies perspective, especially from the new generation. It's time to end him.
That is why we are opening the debate on reducing working time. Four-day work is gaining ground in many European countries, with the aim of reducing hours without reducing wages and improving the balance between working and personal life. We propose incentives for the implementation of 32 or 35 hours of work per week, with full pay. Because 35 hours is not just a social measure, it can become a lever for increasing productivity.
When work is better organised, when skills are enhanced and technology is exploited, performance per hour is increased and the economy becomes more efficient overall. This has been a national priority since the Thessaloniki International Fair: to increase labour productivity from 56% of the European average to 75% by the beginning of the next decade. To achieve this, substantial changes are needed: strengthening labour rights, better linking education and the labour market, integrating artificial intelligence, quality investment in research and technology. The Mitsotaki government does not believe and cannot implement these reforms.
On the contrary, it went on to further intensify and deregulation with the introduction of six-day work and 13-hour work. He did not use critical tools, such as the Recovery Fund, to modernise the economy and upgrade work. It reproduces the failed doctrine that the well-being of the economic elite is the necessary condition, so that wealth can «Okay.» finally towards society. The effects are visible: While Greeks work more than any other people in the European Union, they produce just over half of the European average and have the lowest purchasing power. Moreover, profits as a percentage of GDP are among the highest in Europe, while the share of wages from the lowest. These inequalities are no coincidence.
They are a symptom of a model that chooses to devalue work instead of upgrading it. So the dilemma is clear and it is not just economical. It is deeply political and social. Will we continue to recycle the trap of low productivity or dare to change direction? Are we really going to invest in the value of work or are we going to continue to discredit it? PASOK was born as the movement of the people of toil and production – and thus remains. With a clear commitment: a better life for the world of work, to put an end to the vicious cycle of low expectations. For a Greece for everyone, with the priority of the new generation».
