Checks by Greece’s Labour Inspectorate have intensified over the summer, particularly in tourist areas, with inspectors uncovering a string of imaginative but unlawful practices some employers are using to sidestep the digital work card, the electronic clock in and clock out system introduced to curb undeclared and unpaid overtime, and avoid the fines that come with breaching it.

According to a report by ERT, Greece’s state broadcaster, one of the most common tactics is to list staff as “supervisors” or department heads, a category exempt from the requirement to use the digital work card. In one inspection at a supermarket, almost every member of staff had been designated as head of a different department, despite carrying out ordinary duties as sales assistants or cashiers.

In restaurants and beach bars, inspectors have also recorded cases where staff drop their trays the moment officials appear and pretend to be customers instead, settling onto sunbeds or wading into the sea. In one instance, a worker who had been serving customers presented himself as a bather, while the owner temporarily took over service.

It is also common for staff to be present at their workplace well before their shift officially begins, with no working hours recorded for that time. When challenged during inspections, employers claim staff are only there for a coffee or to prepare for the day, though inspectors examine whether genuine work is, in practice, being carried out.

Among the most extreme cases on record during a labour inspection, is one at a woodworking workshop, where an employer reportedly told staff to hide inside coffins during an inspection. At another business producing packaged goods, employees were found hiding inside refrigerated storage units, while at a clothing shop, staff had hidden in the fitting rooms, with the owner claiming she ran the business alone.