News

Troika letter "closed" discussion on disputed labour issues:

He troika of international lenders on Sunday evening sent a letter to Labour Minister Yiannis Vroutsis in which they "close" the discussion on the disputed issues of marriage benefits and collective labour agreements, ministry sources told state-run AMNA news agency.
According to the sources, the EC-ECB-IMF representatives state that "the Greek side, in the context of the negotiation on the labour issues, achieved the biggest possible agreement".
The troika rejects the preservation of the marriage benefit and says that its abolition has been already voted, while they are also absolutely negative to the preservation of the residual extension of the branch collective labour agreements.
However, they appear to be positive towards the ministry's proposals on the layoff compensations, so that the cuts will be contained at 15 percent for the high salaries, while the freeze on the three-year salary maturity raises will be maintained until the completion of the Medium-Term Programme at the end of 2015.
DEMOCRATIC LEFT:

We do not want to vote for the changes in the labour regime", Democratic Left central committee secretary Spyros Lykoudis said on Monday, speaking on public radio, leaving, however, open windows for a compromise.
"The labour issues have five sides. If they (the troika) step back in four of them, then okay. We do not play games here, neither us nor the other side. We speak on the substance," he said.
Asked whether the government will face the risk of collapsing if the measures are tabled in a single article, he said: "That is true, but I believe prudence and a collective sense will prevail in order for a solution to be found. We truly want the government's cohesion and not a political and governmental crisis to arise..."
 Democratic Left spokesman Andreas Papadopoulos, speaking on private VIMA radio station earlier on Monday, said that he doesn't know if his party will vote against the package of measures, but he clarified that it will not accept the foreseen changes to the labour regime.
 "There is time for negotiation, provided this takes place at a high level," said Papadopoulos, referring to the troika's persistence on not accepting changes on the issue of residual extension of branch collective labour agreements and in the abolition of the wedding benefit.