On 3 February, civil servants mounted a militant response by gathering outside the Council of State as part of the work stoppage declared by the Civil Servants’ Confederation (ADEDY). A similar mobilization took place in Thessaloniki.
The civil servants are demanding an immediate decision on the reinstatement of the 13th and 14th salaries. These were additional payments previously received by public sector employees during the year —an extra full salary at Christmas, half a salary at Easter, and half a salary during the summer vacation period— and were abolished in 2012–2013 through anti-popular legislation, under the pretext of addressing the capitalist economic crisis.
The protesters marched to the Ministry of Finance, chanting slogans such as “Give money for health and salaries, not for NATO equipment”.
ADEDY, which recently held a conference where, for the first time in its history, communists emerged as the leading force, is calling for substantial pay increases for civil servants.
