Greek Private Sector Wages Set for Major Increases in 2026

Significant changes to private sector wages are expected in Greece in 2026, with many employees set to see pay increases ranging from 15% to as much as 20%. The projected rise is linked to a government-backed effort to revive and expand collective bargaining agreements across a wider range of industries, alongside further increases to the national minimum wage.

The agreement between the government and social partners aims to restore collective negotiations and gradually extend sector-wide labor agreements to cover far more workers. Currently, only around 24% of employees in Greece are protected by a collective labor agreement. The government’s long-term goal is to raise this figure to 80% over the coming years. At present, just 25 sectoral agreements are in force, most of which expire in 2026, while 170 company-level agreements were signed in the first half of 2025 alone.

Additional momentum is expected from a new increase in the minimum wage, scheduled to take effect on April 1, pushing it beyond the current level of €880 per month. The government has committed to raising the minimum wage to €950 over the course of its four-year term, a target that could be reached or even exceeded by 2027.