Greece PEO & EOR services

PEO/EOR employment termination and notice period in Greece

In indefinite/permanent contracts, the employee must go through a probationary period for the first year of the contract. The probationary period is considered the initial trial run that many new employees have to go through at the beginning of the agreement. The probationary period can be terminated without notice and without severance pay, except if agreed upon differently in the contract.

After the first 12 initial months, the employee’s contract can be terminated only with written notice from the employer, which will take place the day after the employee has been notified.

On the contrary, fixed-term contracts can be terminated by the employer or the employee, without notice period, before the agreed end date in case of valid reasons. If valid reasons are provided, the employer could decide not to pay compensation.

Valid reasons for the employers could be:

• Incompetence or unsatisfactory performance;
• Breach of contractual obligations;
• Disturbing the peace of the workplace;
• Failure to comply with the employer’s instructions;
• Undermining workplace cooperation and trust;
• Material long-term absence due to illness;
• Disciplinary offences (e.g. breach of code of conduct);
• Participation in an illegal strike;
• Change of production methods;
• Introduction of new technologies;
• Structural reorganization;
• Lack of raw materials;
• Decrease in production.

In Greece, the notice period varies on the length of service provided for the company. The employer can choose to either pay compensation to the employee or give a period of notice prior to the end of the service.