Post date: Sep 29, 2010 11:58:35 AM
A day of strikes and protests in Greece as workers demonstrate against tough and unpopular government economic reforms, as part of the European Day of Protest.
ATHENS, GREECE (SEPTEMBER 29, 2010) REUTERS -
Transport in the Greek capital was halted for five hours as employees from buses, trains and the underground walked out on Wednesday (September 29). Doctors, telephone company employees, dockworkers also went on strike and staged a demonstration in the centre of Athens.
The labour actions will be followed by further protests later in the day by public and private sector unions.
Union workers from the buses, trolleys, trains, metro and tram walked out at around 08:00 gmt for a four or five hour work stoppages. Commuters scrambled to find taxi cabs to fill the void.
Public hospital doctors refused to show up for their shifts for 24 hours, as well as telephone employees from the public phone company.
Workers have been striking and protesting in Greece since March when the government announced a series of cost cutting measures to reduce the country's debt, and after it was forced to receive a rescue package from the EU and IMF to avoid bankruptcy.
The measures have affected jobs, wages and pensions, and have raised taxes, as the country seeks to reduce public spending, clean up waste, and fill the state's coffers.
Those protesting on Wednesday were from the public sector, as the measures affect primarily civil servants, where many reforms have been implemented.
The protests also come as a European Day of Protest was called for Wednesday by labour groups.
Despite all the protests, sometimes deadly, the government has not cut corners in its program, barrelling through with the reforms, monitored by the EU and IMF, although admitting some are painful.