Ferries, trains halted as Greece strikes over working hours 

File photo.

Greek trains, ferries and taxis were halted and protests were expected successful the superior Athens connected Wednesday during a one-day wide strike against extended working hours.

The enactment was organized by Greece’s largest backstage and nationalist trade unions to protestation a authorities program to widen a 13-hour working time headdress present successful effect for workers with two jobs to workers with 1 job. The regularisation is expected to walk successful October, a Labor Ministry authoritative said.

Unions accidental it will summation unit connected workers successful Greece, which is emerging from the 2009-2018 indebtedness situation that slashed wages and pensions and caused unemployment to skyrocket. While Greece’s system is recovering and surviving standards person improved aft a bid of wage increases, Greeks still trail their European peers successful purchasing powerfulness connected rising lodging and nutrient costs.

“We accidental nary to a 13-hour workday. Working clip is not a commodity. It’s our life,” the GSEE union, which represents astir 2.5 cardinal workers successful the backstage sector, said successful a statement up of the strike.

Workers are expected to stitchery successful cardinal Athens successful the morning.

The authorities says the betterment would use lone for up to 37 days a year, connection workers the accidental to get 40% overtime payments and that it comes pursuing employers and workers’ demands for a much flexible labour market.

[Reuters]