Greece general strike disrupts services across the country

Audio By Carbonatix

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — A nationwide general strike in Greece left ferries tied up in port and disrupted public transportation across the capital on Wednesday, as public and private sector workers protest changes to the country’s labor laws.

No taxis in Athens or trains will run for the duration of the 24-hour strike, while buses and the city’s subway, tram and trolley services were operating on a reduced schedule.

The strike was disrupting services across the country, including in schools, courts, public hospitals and municipalities. Two protest marches were planned in central Athens, with demonstrations also set for other cities.

Unions representing civil servants and private sector workers called the strike to protest labor law changes that will introduce more flexibility, including allowing overtime that could stretch shifts to 13 hours in a day. Under the new regulations, working hours that include overtime would be capped at 48 hours per week, with a maximum 150 overtime hours allowed per year.

Unions argue the new rules leave workers vulnerable to labor abuses by employers.

“We say no to the 13-hour (shift). Exhaustion is not development, human tolerance has limits,” the private sector umbrella union, the General Confederation of Workers of Greece, said in a statement. The union called for a 37½-hour working week and the return of collective bargaining agreements.