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Greek Parliament Workers Will Face Cuts

Greek Parliament workers who were exempted from pay and benefit cuts in a $17.45 billion spending cut and tax hike bill after they threatened to walk off the job immediately during a debate on the measure and prevent a vote, may not have escaped after all.
A bill to reduce their pay and other perks for jobs that are highly paid and offer up to 16 months salaries a year for little work will be submitted to Parliament as early as next week, the newspaper Kathimerini reported.
While the government of Prime Minister Antonis Samaras gave in to their threats at the same time it was pushing the bill making widespread cuts in virtually every other public sector, sources told the newspaper that the Premier and Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras are determined to include the parliament workers in a unified pay structure for the civil service and cut their pay the same as everyone else’s.
Stournaras submitted the legislation late during a Nov. 7 debate, causing uproar in Parliament as staff threatened to go on strike and stop airing the House’s TV channel, which was providing live coverage of the debate ahead of the crucial midnight vote for Greek TV and foreign media.
There were also angry reactions from SYRIZA and Independent Greeks. Stournaras suggested that the two parties were attempting to protect unfair privileges in the public sector and had encouraged parliamentary staff to threaten action over the measures. SYRIZA and Independent Greeks said they were protesting the way the amendment was submitted rather than its content. Fearing that the vote might not be able to take place, the government withdrew the amendment.
Besides their privileged positions, with many hired through patronage connections for jobs such as handing out water, opening doors and standing in hallways, the parliament workers enjoy higher pay than most civil servants. The new legislation will also seek to end the process by which the employees’ appointment and benefits are regulated by Parliament, which often adopts secretive methods, rather than the broader public sector.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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