The new labor law allows employers to ask for up to 400 hours of overtime work per year, leading critics to label it the “slave law”.
BUDAPEST: Around 10000 people took to the streets of Budapest in one of the biggest demonstrations Hungary has seen for some time.
All opposition parties appeared on stage and promised that they would stand united to put pressure on the government.Trade unions also joined the rally.
By Sunday, the demonstrations had become a catchall protest against many aspects of Mr. Orban’s increasingly autocratic governance.
Protesters waved Hungarian and European Union flags in Budapest as they walked from Heroes’ Square towards parliament in crisp winter weather.
The crowd became increasingly angry as speakers urged demonstrators to remain dignified and peaceful. They yelled: “We’ve had enough!” and “Strike, strike, strike!”
Trade unions say the changes were made at the behest of large international manufacturing companies and could expose workers to exploitation – as well as delays in overtime payments.
According to the government, the law will benefit both those wanting to work more hours and employers who need more manpower as the economy struggles with labour shortages.
PM Viktor Orban has often clashed with Brussels as he has built a system that his critics see as autocratic, boosting his control over the courts and the media.
Orban was reelected in April on the back of a fiercely anti-immigration campaign, facing a weak and fragmented opposition.
