Titoli di Stato area Euro GRECIA Operativo titoli di stato - Cap. 1

[tommy271]

Greek Cabinet Approves Changes to Labor Rules, Caps Wages

By Maria Petrakis - Dec 10, 2010 10:07 AM GMT+0100 Fri Dec 10 09:07:28 GMT 2010


Greece’s government backed plans to push through changes to labor contracts and wage cuts at state enterprises, stepping up the pace of reforms to meet conditions of a 110 billion-euro ($146 billion) European Union-led bailout.

The law will be discussed in Parliament under fast-track rules as the changes must be in effect from Jan. 1, according to an e-mailed statement from the Finance Ministry in Athens yesterday.

Workers at state companies including Hellenic Railways Organization SA and other public-transport companies will have wages reduced 10 percent if monthly salaries exceed 1,800 euros, according to the statement. That will affect about 89 percent of all employees of state enterprises. Gross wages will be capped at 4,000 euros a month.

Greece’s budget deficit in 2009 was revised to the highest in the euro region on Nov. 15, putting pressure on Prime Minister George Papandreou to adopt more measures to meet pledges in the bailout package that allowed the country to avoid a default. The shortfall was revised to 15.4 percent of gross domestic product from 13.6 percent after incorporating spending by public corporations.

The country’s 11 most unprofitable state companies had combined sales of 1.5 billion euros in 2009 and losses of 1.7 billion euros, the government has said. Wage costs for the 11 totaled 1.2 billion euros in 2009, with 78 percent of income going to salaries. Net borrowing of the 11 companies amounts to 12 billion euros, the ministry has said.

Transport Strikes

Public-transport workers, who staged a 24-hour strike on Dec. 8, have called a series of walkouts starting Dec. 12, according to a spokesman at the General Confederation of Labor, or GSEE, the country’s largest union group.

Subway, bus, tram and trolleybus workers will walk off the job on Dec. 12 and Dec. 13 for six hours and hold 24-hour strikes on Dec. 14 and Dec. 16. Public transport will run on Dec. 15, the day of a general strike against the government’s economic measures, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. to allow protesters to attend rallies in the city center.

The Cabinet also approved changes that will allow employers to sidestep industrywide wage agreements and forge wage and working-time accords with their own staff.

(Bloomberg)

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L'esecutivo ellenico ha dato ancora prova di estrema risolutezza.
Le riforme proseguono come un carro armato, anche su questioni molto sensibili e discutibili.

 

[tommy271]

Emergency bill tabled in Parliament




ANA-MPA/A draft bill citing "urgent measures for the implementation of the support programme" was tabled in Parliament on Thursday evening, foreseeing changes to collective labour agreements, deep reforms in the labour market and wide-ranging wage cuts in loss-making state utilities and enterprises. The bill was discussed during a meeting of the cabinet earlier in the day.

The bill will be debated via an urgent process at the economic affairs committee on Monday, in one session, and will be unveiled for a plenum vote on Tuesday.

Measures are linked directly to the achievement of the targets and the smooth implementation of the country's Economic Policy Programme and must be in force as of Jan. 1, 2011.


(ana.gr)


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Altro che il Parlamento Italiano ...

 

[tommy271]

I TITOLI DEI GIORNALI:

A draft law foreseeing changes in labour relations, cuts in salaries in Public Utilities and organisations (DEKO) and fiscal and tax reforms, and European Commissioner on Economic and Monetary Affairs Olli Rehn's meetings in Athens, dominated the headlines on Friday in Athens' newspapers.

ADESMEFTOS TYPOS: "Games with the collective labor agreements and cuts in salaries".
AVGHI: "Slavery instead of labour".
AVRIANI: "Troika (EC, ECB, IMF) humiliated the government, the MPs and the ministers".
ELEFTHEROS: "Government secretly preparing a new 62 billion euros loan".
ELEFTHEROTYPIA: "This is the Memorandum".
ELEFTHEROS TYPOS: "Jungle".
ESTIA: "The vicious circle of tax evasion".
ETHNOS: "Storm of reversals via sweeping bill".
IMERISSIA: "Wave of reforms - New landscape in labour, DEKO, investments".
KATHIMERINI: "Reversals in DEKO and labour relations".
LOGOS: "Changes on four 'burning' fronts".
NAFTEMPORIKI: "Sweeping reversals in labour legislation".
NIKI: "Ultimatum on the fourth tranche".
RIZOSPASTIS: "Communist Party leader Aleka Papariga: Opposition strategy that leads people to question and reverse the system".
TA NEA: "Storm warning: Reversals in decades of vested rights".
VRADYNI: "Society in front of the firing squad".


(ana.gr)

 

[tommy271]

Samaras, Rehn discuss economy




ANA-MPA/Main opposition New Democracy (ND) leader Antonis Samaras had an extensive discussion with EU economic and monetary affairs commissioner Olli Rehn on the Greek economy and ND's proposals for exiting the crisis and spurring growth, during a dinner he hosted for the EU official in Athens on Thursday night.

Samaras pointed out the faults and missed targets of the fiscal policy applied in the past year, noting a shortfall in the targeted state revenues, unemployment that was running at 12 percent, the recession that has exceeded even the most negative predictions, and inflation that was running at 5.5 percent against a prediction of 1.9 percent.

The opposition leader further underlined the weaknesses of the Memorandum, warning that the measures taken "are leading nowhere", and briefed Rehn on the proposals recently set out by ND for exiting the crisis.

He outlined the specific measures recommended by ND, with emphasis on the exploitation of the state's real estate holdings and the subsidisation of mortgage loans.


(ana.gr)


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Il parere dell'opposizione di destra.

 

[tommy271]

Employment Minister Katseli on social partners




ΑΝΑ-ΜPA/Employment and Social Solidarity Minister Louka Katseli, speaking after the cabinet meeting on Thursday, said that "with the special enterprise collective contracts the individual contracts are weakened and the collective contracts are strengthened."


Katseli stressed that it is no longer the employer's right to do what he likes but how salaries will be determined, among other things, work in turns and part-time employment, this is a "field of understanding and negotiating between the social partners."


The minister further noted that this new element "in essence strengthens the role of social partners in businesses."


(ana.gr)


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Sempre sulla riforma del mercato del lavoro.

 

[tommy271]

Deputy Tourism minister on Russian tourists


MOSCOW (ANA-MPA/Th. Avgerinos) - Deputy Culture and Tourism Minister George Nikitiadis, speaking to the Russian RIA-Novosti agency on the occasion of his visit to Moscow, said that Greece is planning to double the number of Russian tourists from the next tourist season.

"Russia is one of the most important markets for Greek tourism. In the past season the Russian tourists were about 330,000. I want to hope that this number will increase in double in 2011 and maybe even more," Nikitiadis said, explaining that the Greek government has decreased taxes and is taking a series of other measures to strengthen the competitiveness of the Greek tourist product and to keep prices low.

(ana.gr)

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Tutto l'esecutivo si muove a 360 gradi ...

 

[tommy271]

Greece to Consider Hellenic Post, Attica Stakes Sales

By Maria Petrakis - Dec 10, 2010 10:35 AM GMT+0100 Fri Dec 10 09:35:56 GMT 2010


Greece’s government will consider selling its stakes in two state-controlled banks and will cut wages and curb costs at a third lender as the country bolsters the stability of its financial system.

The government will consider the disposal of holdings in Hellenic Postbank SA and Attica Bank SA when it sees the conditions as appropriate, according to a report to the European Union, released yesterday by e-mail from the Athens-based Finance Ministry. Agricultural Bank of Greece SA, the only Greek bank to fail regional stress tests earlier this year, will be “thoroughly” restructured as a stand-alone institution, according to the report.

In a separate statement, the ministry said the cabinet approved a wage cut of 10 percent for employees at Agricultural who make more than 1,800 euros ($2,400) a month, as well as abolishing some bonuses. Plans to hire 700 new staff were canceled, the statement said.

Shares in Hellenic Post rose as much as 8.8 percent to 3.40 euros at 10:45 a.m. in Athens, while Attica shares gained 5.6 percent to 1.14 euros. Agricultural, known as ATEbank, climbed 10 percent to 87 cents.

The state owns 34 percent of Hellenic Postbank, and has an indirect holding of about 19 percent in Attica through the Hellenic Loan and Consignment Fund. It owns 77 percent of ATEbank.

(Bloomberg)


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Fare cassa e alleggerire lo Stato...

 

[tommy271]

Rehn optimistic as legislation is pushed through

Cabinet OKs wage cuts, contract bypass


EU Monetary Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn leaves a press conference yesterday. He said he expects Greece to see growth in the second half of next year and for national debt to drop below 80 percent of GDP over the next 10 years.


Greece received words of encouragement yesterday from European Monetary Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn, as the Cabinet approved landmark legislation affecting labor rights and the status of employees at public enterprises, known as DEKOs.

Coming just 48 hours after the visit of International Monetary Fund Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn, Rehn conveyed an equally optimistic message, saying the government had shown «strong will» in trying to restore fiscal balance, that Greece was «regaining the trust of its European partners» and that the European Union was likely to approve the extension to the period Athens will have to repay its 110-billion-euro loan package by seven-and-a-half years.

Speaking at a conference, Rehn said that he was «certain» the extension would be approved next year and added that this move would not lead to Athens having to adopt more austerity measures. The commissioner also expressed confidence that Greece would meet the targets it has been set by the EU and the IMF next year.

The Finn later addressed Parliament, where his optimism did not blunt attacks from MPs of all parties bar the Communists, who did not attend the session. Rehn had little time to answer questions about the lack of strong leadership in the EU and the confusion within the bloc about how to deal with the crisis. «It is increasingly a systemic crisis and therefore we need a systemic answer,» admitted Rehn. However, he angered deputies by claiming that he misses soccer practice on Sundays so he can deal with Greece's economic problem.

The Cabinet, meanwhile, gave the green light to legislation that will allow companies to bypass collective contracts and offer employees in-house pay deals. The details will be finalized with EU officials over the weekend but the law may allow firms to offer the minimum national wage for a certain period.

Ministers also approved legislation that will cap monthly salaries at DEKOs at 4,000 euros gross and will force anyone earning more than 1,800 euros to take a 10 percent pay cut.

Workers on all forms of public transport, who held a strike on Wednesday to protest these measures, are to stage two days of work stoppages. On Sunday, there will be no service between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. and on Monday the network will come to a halt between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. Sunday's closure coincides with the special dispensation given to shops in central Athens to open ahead of the Christmas holidays.

Transport workers will also be staging work stoppages on Wednesday as part of a 24-hour general strike. Unionists are due to meet this weekend to decide whether they should also hold strikes on Tuesday and Thursday.


(Kathimerini.gr)

 

[tommy271]

Recession deepens further in Q3

Unemployment soars to 12.6 percent in September, with over 210,000 jobs lost within a year


Greece’s economy shrank by a disheartening 4.6 percent in the third quarter of the year while unemployment soared to 12.6 percent in September, Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT) figures showed yesterday.

The cycle of recession is continuing and the yearly contraction of the country’s gross domestic product is becoming ever more evident in the real economy.

Given that the Finance Ministry estimates the slowdown at close to 4.2 percent by the end of the year and that in the first three quarters it came to 3.8 percent, the last quarter of the year is likely to see GDP shrinking by up to 5.5 percent. The growth rate is not expected to recover until the end of 2011 or the start of 2012.

Compared with the year’s second quarter, GDP shrank by 1.3 percent in Q3 as the economy continued its decline in September for the ninth month in succession.

The sluggishness of the economy is attributed to a 20 percent drop in fixed-capital investment and a 5.5 percent drop in consumption (5.8 percent decline in private consumption and 4.7 percent for the state). There was also a 15 percent reduction in building permits in September from the same month in 2009.

Exports declined in the July-September period by 1.1 percent, while imports posted a considerable decrease of 17.8 percent, owing to the shrinking demand for numerous commodities. This meant a further decrease in the trade deficit, which declined by 42.2 percent in the third quarter compared with Q3 2009.

In the year to September 2010, a total of 211,349 jobs were lost, with the new unemployed in the market amounting to 170,192. Therefore the jobless rate climbed from 9.1 percent in September 2009 to 12.6 percent in September this year, a level unseen since January 2004. The number of unemployed climbed by 37.4 percent from a year earlier to 627,715.

Unemployment among women in particular soared from 13.4 percent in September last year to 16.7 percent this year. The worst-hit age group is 15- to 24-year-olds, for whom the jobless rate reached 33.6 percent in September. The region with the worst rate is Western Macedonia, where 16.3 percent of the work force was without a job in September.

To make matters worse, according to 2008 revenue figures, some 19.8 percent of the country’s population is at risk of falling beneath the poverty line – defined as 6,987 euros per person per year or 14,484 euros per year for a family with two children.

(Kathimerini.gr)

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I dati pubblicati ieri, qui in maniera più approfondita.

 

[tommy271]

Crisis fuels pre-holiday scrimping



Owners of hotels and guesthouses at popular winter holiday destinations report a significant drop in bookings for the Christmas season, a slump experts attribute to the impact of the debt crisis. Meanwhile a survey by consumer protection group KEPKA shows that a third of Greeks are planning to spend their additional holiday salary on paying off debts.

Constantinos Dafalias, who rents out rooms in Kalavryta, told Kathimerini that his bookings were down 20 percent compared to last Christmas. “People shop around before choosing their accommodation,” he said. For some guesthouse owners, the outlook is even grimmer. “At the moment, we have 60 percent of the bookings we had last year,” said Alexandros Vangelis, who runs a guesthouse in the village of Tsepelovo, in Zagorohoria, northwestern Greece. Vangelis said most of his customers this year were residents of northern Greece, noting that the high fuel prices meant few people were making long journeys by car. Also, would-be customers are haggling more than ever despite the relatively low prices, he said.
Travel agencies in Athens and Thessaloniki have also seen a drop in interest, reporting a slump in revenue of up to 50 percent. Even the cheapest package tours for road trips to Balkan cities are being snubbed, said a spokesman for a travel agency in Thessaloniki.

Meanwhile, a study by consumer protection group KEPKA has shown that 30.75 percent of Greeks are planning to spend their additional Christmas salary to pay off debts, up 9 percent from last year. “The mood of consumers is very negative,” said the president of KEPKA, Nikos Tsimberlidis. “Even those who have not been directly affected by the crisis are drastically reducing their spending,” he added.


(Kathimerini.gr)


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La recessione morde anche sulle Festività Natalizie.