Greek journalists strike over pension system
By Leah McBride Mensching, Tuesday 27 November 2007 at 22:42 :: Labor & Employment :: #913 :: rss
Greek journalists went on strike today, and more than 4,000 of them attended a rally and marched through central Athens to protest the reformation of the country's broken pension system.
The 24-hour strike began at 6 a.m. (0400GMT), after which content on Greek news Web sites was not renewed and state-run and private radio and television news was cancelled. And as no journalists were on the job today, no newspapers will be published Wednesday, the Associated Press reported.
The only journalists exempt from the walkout were those covering the strike, the ESHEA journalists' union said in a statement.
Government press offices also were affected, as they are staffed mostly by journalists, the AP reported.
Journalists will join a general strike across Greece Dec. 12. On Monday, school teachers staged a walk-out. Additionally, doctors at a public hospital and public-sector engineers said they would walk off the job for three hours Tuesday morning, according to the AP.
Labour unions in Greece are opposed to measures the government has proposed that attempt to unify the nation's 170 pensions funds. Future deficits of the funds will collectively reach between €120 billion and €400 billion collectively, which are expected to start affecting the budget within 10 years. Unions worry the proposed reforms would cut future pension benefits and increase retirement ages. The next round of negotiations are set to begin Wednesday, the AP reported.
Comments
No comment.
Post comment