Galery

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The week of mass strikes and protests against lay-offs of civil servants started with an occupation of the Ministry of Public Administration. School guards blocked the entrance of the building and the intervention of the police was necessary, which used tear gas in order to disperse demonstrators. They are currently outside the fence of the yard of the Ministry, but are still on the avenue opposite it. Vassilis Sofias Avenue is closed from Syntagma Square to the Hilton Hotel, which is causing a lot of traffic jams at this time in the centre of Athens. There are reports that two protesters have been taken to hospital with breathing problems.

The news will be similar all this week, which will be marked by protests of trade unions against government plans of lay-offs of thousands of state employees. Today, at 12.00 o’clock, a demonstration of workers in education and social security funds will be held in front of the old building of Athens University on Panepistimiou Avenue. The union of civil servants ADEDY will go on strike at 11.30 a.m. which will last until the end of the working day. Teachers in public schools will start five-day protests as of today, and teachers in private schools have announced a 48-hour strike for today and tomorrow.

From today until Friday, teachers in colleges and secondary special schools will also go on strike, since the government is intending to lay off 1,500 employees in the sector. Again as of today until Friday, workers in insurance funds, the National Employment Service and the Ministry of Employment will also go on strike, since a total of 618 people will be laid off in these institutions.

As of tomorrow until Thursday, hospital doctors will go on strike, and medical staff in hospitals will go on strike on Wednesday and Thursday, when a 48-hour nationwide strike has been announced by the union of civil servants ADEDY. The trade union of public workers GSEE has announced a strike in the private sector on Wednesday from 11.00 a.m. to 3 p.m. A large protest march will also be held in central Athens the same day.

Lawyers will also participate in protests and they will not perform their duties tomorrow and on Wednesday, since parliament will discuss the new legal code at the time, which will repeal a major part of their privileges and, in practice, is a step towards the opening of the legal profession in Greece.