Recruiting Top Talent in Greece

Recruiting Top Talent

Recruitment can be a tricky business, especially when a company is venturing to unfamiliar countries and exploring new markets. This is where we come in to oversee the process for you – Bradford Jacobs’ expertise and over 20 years of experience in international recruitment services is indispensable for an international expansion into Greece.  Hiring the right talent in Greece to expand your company can result in a thriving business with numerous opportunities. However, the recruitment process can be complicated when you have no physical presence in Greece yet. Our PEO and EOR service can be the solution for your company.

Are you curious about the recruitment process in Greece? In this guide, we will share the ground rules of hiring and recruiting talent in Greece. Our comprehensive knowledge of all Greek employment sectors and understanding of the culture and customs guarantees an untroubled transition.

The Recruitment Process in Greece

A foreign company does not require the assistance of a local entity to hire an employee. However, it is crucial to your recruitment efforts to understand where you can find the right talent (both foreign and domestic), as well as which national employment organizations an employer can collaborate with to access the right talent pools. This, though, takes time. And once the employee is found, the recruitment process must follow rigorous procedures, which include:

• Registering with the Greek Tax Office (EFORIA) for a Tax Identification Number (AFM)
• Registering with the Social Security Organization (IKA) for a Social Security Number (AMKA)
• Register employee information with the online information system ERGANI (for the Labor Inspectorate)
• Creating the employment contracts, in Greek and English
• Applying special expatriation status (if applicable)
• Calculating monthly salary and creating payslips
• Researching available tax-free allowances
• Submitting wage tax returns and national insurance forms
• Corresponding with the involved parties
• Creating annual accounts, administration, and year-end statements
• Creating a payment schedule for wage tax, national and social insurances, and net wages

This process requires time and dedication, and how can you find these things in the array of all these complicated tasks? Well, allow us to provide the answer – by engaging an Employer of Record (EOR) such as Bradford Jacobs. By acquiring our services, we can convert your Greece expansion goals into an action plan with a few simple steps:

Bradford Jacobs steps in as an EOR, acquiring the right employees and guaranteeing they comply with Greek employment contracts, payroll, HR, tax, visa requirements, and work permits (if required). We manage all the work-related registration formalities, whilst you have daily control of your employees.

The employees complete their time sheets and expenses claims and we invoice you, the client. Once paid, we deduct all contributions to Greek authorities and transfer the balance into employee’s account. Within a few days, your company has international presence in Greece – in a prime position to explore further expansion without risking the expense or hassle of setting up your own subsidiary or branch office.

Legal Checks You Can Make on Employees

Personal data collected by employers for candidate employees must be limited to data that is necessary for the undertaking of the assessment of the candidate’s suitability and skills for the job. Processing personal data relating to a person’s criminal history, drug use or medical history is only considered fair and legal if it relates directly to a job and is necessary for reaching a decision on recruitment. Such data can only be collected directly from the candidate. Personal data concerning a candidate’s health falls under the similar restrictions, and is only necessary for:

• Assessing a candidate’s suitability.
• Fulfilling the employer’s health and safety obligations.
• Establishing employees’ rights and providing welfare benefits.

The Greek national legislation and European Law Constitution also provide requirements for eliminating discrimination. An employer is prohibited from hiring an employee based on their racial or ethnic origin, religion, or beliefs, disability, age, or sexual orientation.

Greek compliance laws also prohibit employers publishing vacancies that reflect an intention to discrimination. All criteria for hiring an employee must be clear and relevant to the job. Greek Law also requires equal opportunities and treatment of men and women at work.

Basic Facts on Hiring in the Greece

The law distinguishes between “employees” and “workers”. The distinction is based on the nature and type of provided services. Any person providing services based on physical strength – a worker; a person providing services based on intellectual skills – an employee. There are, however, instances where the law provides employee classification.

The state supports employment through labor-cost subsidy programs (through the Greek Manpower Employment Organization or OAED) by taking measures to promote the employment of people under the age of 25 or long-term unemployment by reducing labor costs.

Terms and conditions of employment can depend on collective bargaining, trades union and works council agreements.

The employer’s questions during a candidate interview are restricted by data protection legislation – the questions must directly relate to the job specification.

Is it not obligatory for an employment contract in to be writing; however, conditions of employment must be presented to the employee in writing. The Labor Code also requires that the employee’s working hours, salary, benefits, and work schedule be provided to the employee.

Employers must at least meet the minimum wage (currently at EUR 758.33), but the average monthly salary may differ according to the industry/sector.

The length of a typical working week in Greece is 40 hours a week, spread out over 5 or 6 days a week starting between 8am and 9am.

Overtime is permitted but limited to 2 hours per day and 120 hours per year – paid at a rate of 120%.

Employers are provided to provide a list of their employees and their schedules to the Labor Inspectorate once a year (generally in October), and notify them before any changes are made.

Probation in Greece lasts 12 months, and an open-ended employment contract can be terminated without notice or severance pay during this time.

Working with a Recruitment Agency

In Greece, the main body for the support of employment is the Greek Manpower Employment Organization (OAED). This organization utilizes 118 employment promotion centers (known as EPC or EPC2) throughout Greece that people can seek out to find a job and receive guidance. The OAED also seeks to improve qualifications of unemployed people through their creation of active employment, self-employment, and retraining programs.

Greece is a member of the European Employment Service (EURES) network – where EU member nations, Norway, and Iceland exchange information on job vacancies, living and working conditions.

The OAED also employ Greek EURES advisers, who are multilingual are specially trained. They help job seekers find work in any EU country, as well as fill job vacancies that employers in the European area have available. As part of the European Jobs Network, these advisers may also provide information and act as an intermediary between job seekers and employers.

Jobseekers or employers can also find work through private employment agencies to facilitate in finding employment – they are authorized by the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs.

What are the Benefits of Hiring Outsourcing for Greece?

Outsourcing recruitment into Greece provides a major benefit of more efficient, speedy, and cost-effective business expansion. Optimizing this service allows companies to focus on managing their new enterprise and meeting their goals. Other significant advantages for outsourcing include:

• A wide-ranging talent search done with reduced costs.
• Ensure employment compliance requirements are met with no hassle or reprimands.
• More control over your company’s capital expenditure as it removes the need to establish premises for a subsidiary.
• Alleviates risks with an easy operation that provides the employer opportunity to explore new markets.
• Improves work flexibility.

Allows you focus on your core business operations whilst we take care of rest.

Our Solution

At Bradford Jacobs, our Employer of Record (EOR) services take care of employee recruitment, onboarding, payroll, compliance and providing ongoing support. We choose the best-qualified talent to fill the roles you need and use our expansion know-how to guarantee you comply with all Greek payroll regulations, (including salaries, tax, and social insurance) by the time your new employees are sitting at their desks.