Greece faces strike wave on Wednesday, May 13

The public sector is proceeding with a 24-hour nationwide strike on Wednesday (13/05), following a decision by ADEDY (Supreme Administration of Greek Civil Servants’ Trade Unions), with key demands including the restoration of labor achievements, salary increases, and the strengthening of rights.

The central rally will take place at Klafthmonos Square at 10:30 AM, as workers react to issues such as the new disciplinary code, the prospect of abolishing permanent tenure, and planned constitutional changes.

“Greece today faces an unlivable reality where inequalities and exclusions prevail. At the same time—particularly in the fields of health and education—an attempt is being made to transform the operation of the Public Sector and access to public goods. This opens the way for a new reality where the private sector will continuously strengthen its presence at the expense of the public sector, which suffers from a lack of investment and understaffing, while flexible forms of employment are being reinforced.

Now is the time for Unions to organize and fight against those things that bring us to despair daily. Now is the time for organized struggle, mass claims, and a militant response to government policy based on meager raises and a ‘bonus policy’ that replaces the social state,” ADEDY stated in its announcement.

The Main Demands

At the heart of the civil servants’ demands are:

• Defense of the institution of permanent tenure.
• Restoration of the 13th and 14th month salaries (Christmas, Easter, and Summer bonuses).
• Real salary increases for a dignified standard of living.
• Abolition of the 2% unemployment contribution.
• Unfreezing of salary increments for the 2016–2017 two-year period.
• Increasing the tax-free threshold to €12,000, increased by €3,000 for each child.
• Extension and reinforcement of the hazardous and unhealthy work allowance.
• Mass hiring of permanent staff in the Public Sector, particularly in Health, Education, and Social Security.
• Substantial reinforcement of the National Health System (ESY) with bold funding.
• Abolition of anti-labor laws and the new disciplinary code.
• Protection of public goods and opposition to privatizations.

The strike is expected to affect Public Transport, with potential work stoppages or limited services. However, there has been no official update so far.