Although the offer of securities to the public generally require the publication of a prospectus, there is an exemption from that requirement where securities are only offered to employees of the issuer or a group company. The existing security legislation will continue to apply until the Prospectus Directive is implemented in Greek law, which should have happened by 1 July 2005 but is expected to occur by early 2006.

To what extent do employees receive statutory employment protection in your jurisdiction? Are these provisions of mandatory law that apply to all employees, regardless of the choice of law in the employment contact and the identity, place of incorporation or location of the employing entity?