Greek Unions Stage General Strike Over Austerity, Reforms
ATHENS -(Dow Jones)- Greece was rocked by another nationwide general strike Wednesday, the seventh this year, as hundreds of thousands of workers walked off the job to protest against government austerity measures and draconian labor market reforms.
The strike crippled transport around the country as hundreds of flights were cancelled due to a strike by air traffic controllers; while ferry and rail services were also suspended, and public transport workers staged work stoppages around the capital, Athens.
Government ministries, local government services, courts and schools were also shut, while hospitals were operating on skeleton staff. Dentists, pharmacists, taxi drivers have also joined in with various work stoppages, while a strike by journalists led to the cancellation of morning news programming.
"With unified struggles and actions, the workers will quash the anti-labor reforms and repel these attacks on their rights," private-sector umbrella union GSEE said in a statement on their website.
The union, along with its public-sector counterpart, ADEDY, are due to hold a protest rally later Wednesday that is expected to draw a large turnout, but comes amid fears of violence which has marred previous demonstrations.
In May, Greece narrowly avoided default with the help of a EUR110 billion bailout from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund in exchange for a series of austerity measures to narrow its budget deficit and other economic reforms.
Early Wednesday, Greece's socialist government passed a controversial omnibus reform law that calls for steep cuts in labor costs at state-owned enterprises while also liberalizing the country's labor market.
The bill, which was passed under expedited parliamentary procedures, was sharply criticized by Greece's opposition political parties and also drew ire from socialist party backbenchers, with one socialist deputy breaking ranks and abstaining from the vote.
Next week, parliament will also vote on Greece's 2011 budget which aims to reduce the government deficit to 7.4% of gross domestic product next year from a projected 9.4% of GDP this year.
Few expect the reforms to be reversed, which are seen as a precondition for Greece to receive the fourth tranche of its EUR110 billion loan next spring.
However, the unions have vowed to continue their protests with a further public transport strike scheduled for Thursday.
