Athens Metro Workers Extend Strike

By on January 18, 2013 in Economy, News, Politics

metroWorkers on the Athens Metro subway system said they will continue their strike for a third day on Saturday, Jan. 19 and are demanding they be exempted from pay cuts being extended to public workers across the board.

Unionists, who oppose the government’s plans to reduce their wages, met on Jan. 18 and agreed to continue their walk out. They have frequently shut down the city’s subway system over the last nearly three years in protest against austerity measures imposed by the government on the order of international lenders.

Transport Minister Costis Hatzidakis said that, “No group of workers will be exempted from the unified salary structure,” referring to a new reduced wage scale for civil servants. “There is no scope for concessions,” the minister said, noting that the measures must be implemented as part of the country’s commitments to foreign creditors.

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  • Alex

    “Unionists, who oppose the government’s plans to reduce their wages, met on Jan. 18 and agreed to continue their walk out.  ”

    Unions = mostly leftists constantly disrupting our economy.

    When US federal air traffic controller union Patco in the US went on
    strike under Reagan … he told them either get back to work or he
    would fire them. They didn’t… so he fired their *sses.  11,345
    employees lost their jobs and were banned them for life from every seeking federal
    employment. Even after a court appeal only  a small number of them

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Professional_Air_Traffic_Controllers_Organization_%281968%29

    IMO Greek law should be changed so that critical govenment unions members that constantly strike can be wholesale fired from their jobs. If they don’t like their wages for mostly unskilled labour, they are welcome to move on to another job.  I’m sure there are plenty of other Greeks willing to accept the work they refused.

  • Alex

    “Unionists, who oppose the government’s plans to reduce their wages, met on Jan. 18 and agreed to continue their walk out.  ”

    Unions = mostly leftists constantly disrupting our economy.

    When US federal air traffic controller union Patco in the US went on strike under Reagan … he told them either get back to work or he would fire them. They didn’t… so he fired their *sses.  11,345 employees lost their jobs and were banned them for life from every seeking federal employment. Even after a court appeal only  a small number of them ever got a government job again.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Professional_Air_Traffic_Controllers_Organization_%281968%29

    IMO Greek law should be changed so that critical government unions
    members that constantly strike can be wholesale fired from their jobs.

    If they don’t like their wages, for mostly unskilled labour, they are
    welcome to move on to another job.  I’m sure there are plenty of other
    Greeks willing to accept the work they refused.
     

  • Pythagoras

    Compare the salary of an Air Traffic Controller in the USA ($108,000 per year) to that of a Greek public transportation worker ($15,200 per year) and you may see that the Yanks had way more room to play with.

  • Alex

    You are comparing apples to oranges. Air Traffic controller have plenty of training. Most public transportation workers have few skills. (even in the US were they get paid way in the 30-50K range)

    Granted in the US they are paid more but a big part of the reason for discrepancy is because our economy doesn’t produce anything for our government to give high wages like our government unions want.   In America they can collect tax revenue because they produce cars, planes, computers, medicines, etc.. .etc. What do we produce? Goat Cheese and cheap trinkets for tourists. How exactly can we pay the government salaries our unions want with that sort of tax revenue? (especially with so many Greeks abusing services and cheating on taxes)

    Our leftists think they are entitled to live like Germans and Americans producing little more than hot air speeches about “the people” and corruption. If they cared about they people rather than flatter the poor as “victims” they would tell them to stop whining for handouts, get off their lazy incompetent asses, get an education in a field where global markets demand products, and show some entrepreneurship. Bunch of bratty children spoiled by their mothers to believe someone owes them money and a job.