Unions in a striking mood as Greece battles with its budget
Source: Agencies |
March 3, 2010, Wednesday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
GREECE'S biggest public sector union called a 24-hour strike for March 16 to protest new austerity measures expected from the government within days as it eyes a possible eurozone bailout from a crippling debt crisis.
Details of the latest walkout came as taxi drivers abandoned their vehicles yesterday, taking to the streets to march in protest at a tax clampdown, though polls indicated relatively strong public support for the government's budget measures.
EU Economic Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn on Monday called on Greece to do more to rein in a budget deficit whose scale has prompted fears over the country's ability to service its debt and has shaken confidence in the eurozone and its single currency.
"The EU and the government need to understand that we will keep taking to the streets until we topple the unfair and anti-social measures which burden the poor without solving our economy's problem," Illias Vrettakos, vice president of the ADEDY public sector union.
"We will continue our struggle on several fronts, with rallies and protests which will escalate to strikes," said Vrettakos whose union, together with its sister private sector union GSEE, represents about 2.5 million workers - or half of Greece's work force.
The strike will be the third protest ADEDY has staged this year against cost-cutting plans called to reduce the country's budget deficit and bring it back in line with EU rules.
Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou said late on Monday that he had called a cabinet meeting for tomorrow to "take decisions about the economy."
Papandreou is due to travel to Germany on March 5 to meet German Chancellor Angela Merkel and will need to arrive offering fresh budget measures if he is to win more concrete support from the euro zone's biggest member state.
Merkel is facing strong domestic opposition to any bailout, particularly after it emerged that Greece had been filing inaccurate economic statistics. Germany is also taking moves to ensure money from any support package does not end up in the pockets of speculators.
Germany's foreign minister Guido Westerwelle said he regarded talk about financial aid for Greece as inappropriate for now.
Greece's budget deficit hit over 30 billion euros (US$41 billion) or 12.7 percent of gross domestic product last year. Overall public debt in 2009 rose to 272 billion euros, which was more than the country's entire economic output of 240 billion euros.
Details of the latest walkout came as taxi drivers abandoned their vehicles yesterday, taking to the streets to march in protest at a tax clampdown, though polls indicated relatively strong public support for the government's budget measures.
EU Economic Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn on Monday called on Greece to do more to rein in a budget deficit whose scale has prompted fears over the country's ability to service its debt and has shaken confidence in the eurozone and its single currency.
"The EU and the government need to understand that we will keep taking to the streets until we topple the unfair and anti-social measures which burden the poor without solving our economy's problem," Illias Vrettakos, vice president of the ADEDY public sector union.
"We will continue our struggle on several fronts, with rallies and protests which will escalate to strikes," said Vrettakos whose union, together with its sister private sector union GSEE, represents about 2.5 million workers - or half of Greece's work force.
The strike will be the third protest ADEDY has staged this year against cost-cutting plans called to reduce the country's budget deficit and bring it back in line with EU rules.
Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou said late on Monday that he had called a cabinet meeting for tomorrow to "take decisions about the economy."
Papandreou is due to travel to Germany on March 5 to meet German Chancellor Angela Merkel and will need to arrive offering fresh budget measures if he is to win more concrete support from the euro zone's biggest member state.
Merkel is facing strong domestic opposition to any bailout, particularly after it emerged that Greece had been filing inaccurate economic statistics. Germany is also taking moves to ensure money from any support package does not end up in the pockets of speculators.
Germany's foreign minister Guido Westerwelle said he regarded talk about financial aid for Greece as inappropriate for now.
Greece's budget deficit hit over 30 billion euros (US$41 billion) or 12.7 percent of gross domestic product last year. Overall public debt in 2009 rose to 272 billion euros, which was more than the country's entire economic output of 240 billion euros.
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