The largest private and public sector unions in Greece plan a 24-hour nationwide strike for Wednesday, February 24, canceling all flights to/from/within Greece, bringing the majority of public transport to a halt and closing airports, banks, archaeological sites and museums.
Representing half of Greece’s 5 million work force, private sector union GSEE, communists workers group PAME and public sector union ADEDY are protesting austerity measures that impose tax increases, raise the retirement age and reduce salaries, pensions and benefits. Workers also have a long list of demands that include wage increases, job security and access to free, upgraded health care services.
Nationwide strikes in Greece made headlines on February 10 when the much-hyped 24-hour strike by ADEDY attempted to challenge government authority and “cripple or paralyze” the country. With many sharing the sentiment, “What good does it do to strike when it just means the government gets to keep my pay?,” only 5,000 of one million public sector employees protested in the rainy streets of Athens and Thessaloniki (The Nation).
Farmers ended their month-long blockade on February 16, the same day custom officials began a three-day strike and tax officials canceled walkout for February 17. Custom officials renewed strikes Friday February 19 when taxi drivers and fuel tankers staged a 24-hour protest, but the three rolling, 48-hour strikes intended to last through Wednesday fizzled when workers returned to work even before a court ruled their action illegal.
In a weekend poll by Greek newspaper Ethnos, 57.6 percent of Greeks consider belt-tightening to be going in the right direction, 74.2 percent think the government was too slow to react and 75.8 percent say they oppose strikes during a crisis.
Stay informed of current and future strikes at: livingingreece.gr/strikes or follow me at www.twitter.com/livingingreece
What services are affected?
— All airports closed between 00:00-23:59, all flights canceled: Passengers should have received notification. Anyone who did not should call their airline or travel agent now.
— No ships, some ferry services affected
— No OSE national train service
— No Athens trolleys, no Athens metro (blue/red lines), no Athens tram service: See public transport options below.
— No Proastiakos (suburban railway services): See public transport options below.
— Public utilities will be affected: No specific disruptions announced, but residents and businesses may be subject to rolling strikes, i.e., no electricity, no water, no phone or Internet service.
— Hospitals staffed with emergency personnel only
— All Greek public sector offices, courthouses closed: No transactions or hearings.
— All museums and archaeological sites closed: Tourists should plan visit for Tuesday or wait until Thursday.
— Teachers on strike: Schools closed, though some children have a half day. It’s Greece, it depends.
— Banks in Greece closed
— Greek media blackout: No news broadcasts, no newspapers
— Lawyers in Thessaloniki on strike.
There will also be two scheduled protests in the center of Athens, one at 11:00 in Pedion Areos and another at 12:00 in Omonia Square, which means streets will be closed to traffic.
Public transport options — Partial strikes
— Athens metro, green line (ISAP) will only run between 10:00-16:00
— Buses in Athens (ETHEL) will operate between 7:30-22:00 (best option): They are only striking from 5:00-7:30 and 22:00 to end of shift.
— Buses in Thessaloniki (OASTH) will be on strike between 6:00-20:00: In another words, bus service is only available 4:30-6:00 and 20:00-23:30
— KTEL long-distance buses in Greece made no announcement: Travelers are advised to call in advance.
Olympic Air and Aegean Airlines announce flight cancellations & changes
If you have a flight with Olympic Air or Aegean Airlines, please note that all flights for February 24 are canceled. Anyone with a flight on February 23 may have an altered schedule and is advised to follow the links provided. Both announcements are in English this time and contain contact information.
Olympic Air
Flight changes for February 23: OA 147/148, 207/208, 245/246, 266, 463/464, 520/521, 718/719, 918, see “Olympic Air Press Release 22.02.2010.”
Aegean Airlines
Flight changes for February 23: A3 137, 136, 606/607, see “Aegean Airlines Press Release 22.02.2010.”
Sources
“Δελτίο Τύπου – 24ωρη Γενική Απεργία στις 24-2-2010 ” — ΓΣΕΕ
“ΑΝΑΚΟΙΝΩΣΗ ΑΠΕΡΓΙΑΣ 24 ΦΛΕΒΑΡΗ” – ΠΑΜΕ
“Απεργία 24 Φεβρουαρίου 2010” — ΑΔΕΔΥ
“Τι αλλάζει στις συγκοινωνίες την Τετάρτη” — Ta Nea
“Πανεργατική απεργία την Τετάρτη” — Eleftherotypia
“Flight cancellations and changes on February 24, 2010” — Olympic Air
“ΟΑΣΘ: Χωρίς λεωφορεία από τις 06:00 εως τις 20:00 την Τετάρτη” (article removed) — Agelioforos.gr
“Με σοβαρά προβλήματα οι μεταφορές την Τετάρτη” (article removed) — Kathimerini
“Nea” — OASA.gr
“«Έμφραγμα» στις μετακινήσεις λόγω της απεργίας” — Ta Nea
“Διαδήλωση – γκάλοπ απέναντι στην ισοπέδωση” — Eleftherotypia
“Teachers on strike February 24” — Eleftherotypia
“Greece to discuss austerity with EU, IMF” — WSJ
“Greeks say belt tightening in right direction- poll” — Reuters
“Greek farmers end blockade in government victory” – Reuters
“Greek customs officials extend strike” — AP (article removed)
“Fuel deliveries may resume as strike wanes” — Kathimerini
“Customs strike in Greece ruled illegal” — Business Week
“Greek taxis halted” — Reuters
Related posts
“Three-day tourist ticket grants unlimited transport in Athens”
“All flights canceled due to nationwide strike in Greece”
“Aegean Airlines and Olympic Air announce merger” — CTV
Image capture from pamehellas.gr
Kat Reply:
February 23rd, 2010 at 21:05
Note that a portion of the public sector is on strike tomorrow, plus I do say in the article that much of the public sector did not strike on Feb 10 because they want to give the gov’t a chance and can’t afford to lose money.
The public sector accounts for 22.3 percent of the labor force (not the population), but salaries were increased 30 percent since 2001 and productivity did not increase at the same rate, in fact Greece ranked amongst one of the most wasteful in the world. Public sector workers in Italy make up 14.5 percent of the labor force for nearly six times the population of Greece. Firing some people would trim an estimated 18 billion from the budget, which is hardly anything to scoff at.
Watching people work here in comparison to much of the developed world (and developing countries) is like watching a movie in slow motion. That said, I know a lot of hard-working people who run at the speed of light, break a sweat, travel and are nowhere near lazy; but for every one of them, I know at least nine others who say they work hard but greatly exaggerate.
And though Greeks as a population are some of the most educated per capita, one must look below the surface to see if they bought their term papers and actually learned anything beyond memorization. Greeks were shown to be amongst some of the most knowledge poor — just below Poland and just above Aruba and Croatia, which fares badly for innovation and long-term competitiveness in a sustainable economy.
“Knowledge Economy Index”: http://info.worldbank.org/etools/kam2/KAM_page5.asp
Not everyone in the Greek diaspora is a genius, same as any other ethnic group, and IQ has nothing to do with success. Many thrive abroad simply because the market dynamic allows it; it doesn’t necessarily have to do with intelligence or education.