Thousands protest in Athens
ATHENS: Thousands of Greeks gathered in Athens on Wednesday to demand higher wages to cope with rising living costs and a one-day strike left ferries docked at ports, flights grounded and trains at a standstill. Along with air traffic controllers, seafarers and train workers, municipal workers; and bus and metro workers in the capital also walked out.
"The workers' salary only gets us through the 10th or the 15th day of the month, it cannot cover basic needs, such as housing and food, education and health," said private sector workers' representative Dina Gkogkaki, 52, who joined the protests in the central Syntagma Square on Wednesday.
The General Confederation of Greek Workers, which represents more than 2 million private sector employees, says that Greek workers are buying 10% fewer goods compared to 2019 due to inflation and has called for substantial pay rises and collective labour contracts. Finance Minister Kyriakos Pierrakakis told an economic conference in Delphi, Greece that he shared Greek workers' concerns, but that reducing taxation was still a key priority for the government. — Reuters
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