Part-time security work: what applies and what to check

The Greek Labour Code (Presidential Decree 62/2025, art. 113) lets employer and employee agree, in a written individual contract, fixed-term or open-ended, on work shorter than normal hours (§1). A part-time worker is anyone whose hours, counted daily, weekly, fortnightly or monthly, are fewer than those of a comparable full-time worker (§2). Full-time is 40 hours a week (art. 189 §1).

• In writing or not at all: without a written part-time agreement, the law presumes full-time employment (§1).
• Continuous hours: if you work fewer hours a day, your work must be continuous and given once a day (§7).
• Equal access: you have access to the company’s training and the same social services as everyone else (§14).

Under art. 113 §3, rotating employment means working fewer days a week, fewer weeks a month, fewer months a year, or a combination, at full daily hours. In guarding it looks like, for example, three full shifts a week instead of five.

If its activity is reduced, an employer may impose rotating employment instead of dismissal for up to nine months in a calendar year, and only after informing and consulting employee representatives (§3).

• In proportion to hours: pay is calculated as for the comparable worker and corresponds to the hours of part-time work (art. 113 §9). The minimum wage (€920 gross a month from 1.4.2026, Joint Ministerial Decision 8934/2026) is set for full-time work.
• Premiums: Sunday, holiday and night work carries the statutory premium (§6). The rates are explained in security guard salary in Greece 2026.
• Extra hours: work beyond the agreed hours earns a 12% premium for each extra hour. You may refuse when extra work becomes habitual (§11).

On every payslip, check that the hours paid match the hours worked, and that nights and Sundays are shown separately.

Greek Law 2518/1997 requires security staff to hold a work licence, category A or B (art. 3 §1); it is personal, valid for five years and renewable (art. 3 §6). Each month the company reports its staff to the police with each person’s licence number and post (art. 4). The conditions are covered in how to become a security guard in Greece.

• Clear availability: state from the start which days and hours you can work, and keep it up to date.
• No no-shows: if you do not turn up, the officer on the previous shift cannot leave. If something comes up, tell your supervisor as early as possible.
• Changes via the supervisor: shift swaps only with approval, so the roster always knows who is on post.
• Know the post: read the post orders before each shift, because you are there less often than others.

Limits on hours, rest and shift rotation are explained in security guard shifts and working hours.

• Students: flag exam periods early. Night shifts suit some people, but you need sleep to study; see night shift health.
• Second job: count the hours and the rest between the two jobs; a tired guard does not see.
• If you later want full-time: the law gives part-time workers priority for a full-time post in the same business on equal terms, and part-time service counts as seniority (art. 113 §13).

OVIT hires through its Careers page. Say that you are looking for part-time work, which days and hours you can do, and whether you hold a work licence.