Minimum requirements
Under Greek law, employment contracts are, in principle, not subject to a mandatory written form in order to be valid. However, Law 5053/2023, which implements the EU Directive on transparent and predictable working conditions (EU 2019/1152), imposes a clear obligation on employers to provide employees with written information on the essential terms of employment. This obligation may be fulfilled either through a written employment contract or through a separate written statement, which must be duly communicated to the employee and signed by both parties.
The essential terms of employment, which employers are required to communicate to employees, are the following:
- the identity of the contracting parties;
- the place of work or a notice on the possibility to freely choose the place of work, if applicable;
- the position or job title, rank as well as the subject matter of the work;
- the commencement date of employment;
- the end date or anticipated duration of employment (only in case of fixed-term contracts);
- the details of the indirect employer, in case work is provided through a Temporary Work Agency (TWA);
- the duration and conditions of any probationary period, if agreed;
- any training provided by the employer;
- the duration of annual leave, as well as the method and timing of its granting;
- the procedure to be followed by the employer and the employee in the event of termination of employment, in accordance with applicable legislation, and in particular the requirement of written notice communicated to the other party, the notice periods, the determination of severance pay, as well as the existence of a valid reason, where required;
- the total remuneration, including all components, as well as the frequency and method of payment;
- where the work schedule is entirely or mostly predictable, the normal daily or weekly working time, overtime arrangements and any shift systems;
- where the work schedule is entirely or mostly unpredictable, the variable nature of working time, the number of guaranteed paid hours and the remuneration for additional hours, the reference hours and days, as well as the minimum notice period for the assignment or cancellation of work;
- the applicable collective labour agreement, as well as the parties that have signed it, and
- the competent social security fund, as well as any other employer-provided benefits related to social security.
Fixed-term/Open-ended Contracts
Under Greek law, employment contracts may be concluded either for an indefinite duration or for a fixed term, with the latter being subject to stricter conditions in order to prevent abuse.
The fixed duration of a contract must generally be justified by objective circumstances, such as coverage of extraordinary or temporary needs. In the absence of such circumstances, the employee could claim that the execution of the fixed-term contract constituted a circumvention of lawful rights, including the right to receive severance indemnity upon termination. If the total duration of consecutive fixed-term contracts exceeds 3 years or the number of consecutive renewals exceeds 3 within 3 years, the contract is “presumed” to be of indefinite term (shifting the burden of proof to the employer). If the parties continue the employment relationship after the expiration of the fixed-term contract, the agreement is deemed to be concluded for an indefinite period.
As a general rule, a fixed-term contract ends automatically on its agreed expiry date without payment of severance indemnity. However, early termination is possible only for “serious cause,” defined as any cause which, in accordance with the principle of good faith, makes the continuance of the employment contract impossible for the parties. In practice, the existence of “serious cause” is quite difficult to establish. In the absence of serious cause, the contract may not be validly terminated before its expiry date without the consent of the employee. If the employer nevertheless proceeds to such unilateral termination, the employee has the option either to claim all remaining salaries until the expiry of the contract or to seek reinstatement and back pay.
Trial Period
The employer and employee may agree upon a probation period of a maximum of 6 months for indefinite term contracts. For fixed-term contracts, the probation period cannot exceed one-quarter of the total contract duration, with a cap of 6 months. During the first 12 months of employment, no severance indemnity or prior notice is due upon termination by the employer, regardless of whether a trial period was agreed.
Notice Period
The length of the notice period depends on the employee’s length of service, ranging from 1-4 months. Greek law does not require prior notice of termination to the employee unless agreed between the parties. Nevertheless, if the employer gives to the employee the “lawful notice,” a minimum notice period set by law based on the employee’s length of service – the severance indemnity is reduced to half of the amount applicable to termination without prior notice. This option is rarely followed in practice; most employers prefer to terminate with immediate effect and pay the full severance indemnity.
In case of resignation, the employee is obliged to give notice equal to half of the lawful notice which applies to the employer, up to a maximum of 2 months, although this is also rarely granted in full.
