GSEE strike on April 17: who is participating, how transport will work

Greece will “paralyzed” April 17, since the General Confederation of Greek Workers (GSEE) declared a 24-hour strike with the main slogan “The prices are as high as hell, the wages are as high as hell. We want real raises, we want our collective bargaining agreements back, and we want it now.”

In the spotlight ΓΣΕΕ – increasing wages, immediate measures to combat high costs, combat profiteering and restore collective labor agreements. As announced, the main requirements are as follows:

• VAT reduction for one year on basic food and household items.
• Indexation of prices in tax brackets so that nominal growth in wages and incomes is not negated by tax increases.
• Indexation of all social payments and benefits.
• Expanding the range of recipients of rental subsidies based on income and social criteria to address the problem of high housing costs, especially for young couples and students. Creation of a state reserve of social housing.
• Raising wages above the minimum wage to protect the purchasing power of low- and middle-income households. According to ΓΣΕΕ, “wages are not the cause of the current inflationary surge. Working people and vulnerable social groups are the victims of this profit inflation crisis.”
• Immediate restoration of the National General Collective Labor Agreement and the determination of the minimum wage by workers and employers, as well as the restoration of all priorities of collective labor law (extension of collective agreements, clustering, post-employment, etc.).
• Strict institutional control and transparency in setting costs, prices and profit margins throughout the supply chain, while effectively strengthening the Competition Commission.
• Suppression of speculation in all enterprises in the key sectors of production and trade in basic food products, and the introduction of an emergency tax on the profits of supermarket chains, energy, transport and banking enterprises.

On the day of the 24-hour general strike on April 17, 2024, rallies will be held both in Athens – the central national rally – and in all major cities of the country.

The organization announced its participation in the 24-hour nationwide strike called by ΓΣΕΕ for April 17 ΕΙΝΑΠ, which covers doctors from hospitals in Athens and Piraeus. The relevant announcement states the following: “Governing body ΕΙΝΑΠ announces a 24-hour strike on 17/04/24, the day of the general strike of private sector unions. We demand:

• Closing the work of evening branches.
• Doubling wages.
• Doubling the staff, reducing the service life of contract workers.
• Double funding for hospitals.
• Public and free healthcare for all.
• Gift Aid Recovery.
• We call on ΑΔΕΔΥ and OENGE to declare a 24-hour strike on 04/17/24.”

Ships and ferries will remain in ports in Wednesday, April 17, 2024, due to a nationwide strike by the Panhellenic Seafarers' Federation. The administration of the Panhellenic Federation of Seafarers (ΠΝΟ) unanimously decided to take part in a 24-hour nationwide strike by GSEE with the main demand being to resolve the issue of prices and provide adequate conditions for a decent standard of living.

“Greek seafarers, due to the specific nature of the maritime profession, are among the first to face the consequences of price pressure, because they are the only ones who, at best, work 5-6 months a year in order to live – for themselves and their families – all year round,” – the Panhellenic Federation of Sailors said in a statement. She notes that unemployment benefits for seafarers are meager compared to their land-based counterparts, and the conditions for receiving unemployment benefits are truly prohibitive.

ΠΝΟ emphasizes that the situation with public maritime education and public services of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Insular Policy for obtaining various certificates and diplomas necessary for the exercise of the maritime profession does not meet the growing needs of seafarers, which leads to their departure to the private sector with the corresponding financial burden . It also calls for more personnel to ensure maritime safety.

How the metro, electric trains and trains will work. On Wednesday, April 17, the metro, trains and railway transport will not operate in Attica, as workers announced their participation in a 24-hour nationwide strike by GSEE.

“Participation in the 24-hour nationwide strike called by GSEE for Wednesday, April 17, was announced by the Panhellenic Federation of Railway and Stationary Transport. ΠΟΣ – ΜΣΤ requires the hiring of permanent staff with stable employment, the restoration of free negotiations on collective labor agreements, an increase in wages to address the crisis and the cost of living, the resumption of the railway network throughout Greece, the renewal of rolling stock, the complete restoration of infrastructure – facilities affected by natural disasters (for example, the Volos plant), and improved working conditions everywhere.

We call on our trade unions – members and railway workers – to be actively present at the rally in Platta Klatmonos (Athens), as well as at the rallies that will be held by local labor centers throughout the country, fighting against the rise in prices that affects all families, against the crisis that “The whole Greek society is suffering” – says the Federation in a statement.

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