Digital Employee Card – What is it and how it affects businesses?

The Digital Employee Card, as introduced by employment law 4808/2021, is an innovative tool that allows accurate and real-time recording of work hours. This is the first step in a series of initiatives aiming to improve the daily working experience of all employees.

Firstly, it should be noted that the Digital Employee Card has been implemented since the summer of 2022 for bank institutions and supermarkets employing over 250 persons, and is now gradually being introduced in manufacturing, state-owned enterprises, tourism, and hospitality, as well as in all private businesses, regardless of their size and industry, thus transforming the working landscape in Greece.

As a measure, its purpose is to ensure justice, by combating the chronic issues of undeclared and under-declared work, unpaid overtime, and contribution evasion. The Digital Employee Card will help protect both employees and the thousands of law-abiding businesses against those that try to avoid their responsibilities as employers. It should be clarified that the Digital Employee Card covers all types of employment (full-time, part-time, internship, training, etc.) and all types of working schedules (fixed hours, variable hours, shifts, overtime), while it also records any absences and leaves.

Through the Digital Employee Card, ERGANI II will be updated in real time with the actual hours worked by employees. Then, the system will automatically identify each working hour as regular, overtime and so on, also including breaks, days-off, vacation time, etc. On a purely technological level, the implementation of the Digital Employee Card will be supported by new digital apps that will be available to both employees and employers.

Basically, this is a first step that will be followed by other relevant initiatives aimed to improve that daily life of employees, such as the right to disconnect while working remotely, new forms of leave stipulated in employment law 4808/2021, regulations about work and personal life balance etc.