Greece stands still today as workers across various sectors unite in protest, honouring Labor Day on Holy Wednesday. The mandatory May Day holiday, typically observed on May 1, has been postponed to Easter Tuesday by ministerial decree.
The Panhellenic Seamen’s Federation (PNO), the Civil Servants’ Confederation (ADEDY), and the Greek General Confederation of Labor (GSEE)) have declared a nationwide strike, echoing the collective demands of employees for better working conditions and wages. They ask for:
- Measures to tackle unemployment and protect jobs in the private sector.
- Measures to support and strengthen press circulation and reading, as is done in other advanced European states.
- National and European support measures to protect incomes and jobs in the private sector.
- Information with reliability, pluralism and social sensitivity.
Journalists, technicians, administrators, and photojournalists from print, radio, television, and online media outlets, both public and private, have joined the strike. This includes employees from ERT (Hellenic Broadcasting Corporation), GGE (General Secretariat of Information and Communication), APE-MPE (Athens-Macedonian News Agency), OTA (Local Government Organizations), press offices, and websites.
In the aftermath of the economic crisis and austerity measures, workers now face an “undeclared” economic war waged by employers. The absence of collective bargaining agreements, the questioning and capitulation of collective rights, and the erosion of workplace dignity have become prevalent issues.
The strike action highlights the unprecedented deterioration of living standards, marked by punctuality, poverty, inequalities, restrictions on labour rights, precariousness, and insecurity in workplaces – consequences of the policies implemented.
The strike schedule for media professionals is as follows:
- Tuesday, April 30, 2024, from 5:00 AM until 5:00 AM on Wednesday, May 1, 2024, for all journalists, technicians, administrators, and photojournalists working in newspapers and magazines.
- Wednesday, May 1, 2024, from 5:00 AM until 5:00 AM on Thursday, May 2, 2024, for all journalists, technicians, and administrators working in radio, television, and online media, both public and private sectors, ERT, GGE, municipal radios, and press offices, as well as all journalists across the country.
- Journalists who are members of ESIETHStEE (Panhellenic Union of Journalists of Daily Newspapers of Athens), regardless of their place of employment, will strike from 5:00 AM on Wednesday, May 1, 2024, until 5:00 AM on Thursday, May 2, 2024.
As an integral part of Greek society, media professionals experience worsening daily problems and uncertainty, echoing the struggles of employees, unemployed individuals, pensioners, and freelancers. They continue to fight for their labour and insurance rights, demanding the reinstatement of collective employment contracts, the restoration of professional dignity, and respect for journalistic ethics. They reject attempts to trivialize news, the use of Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs), and the monitoring of journalistic work.
The protection and strengthening of jobs, the restoration of free collective bargaining, the rejection of layoffs and wage and benefit cuts, the adoption of substantial measures for the unemployed, the protection of insurance funds to ensure their robustness and sustainability, and free public health for all insured individuals are permanent demands not only for media professionals but for all workers and society as a whole.
May 1st, a symbol of the global struggle for better working conditions and wages, amplifies the voice of all workers in the media, united in their pursuit of fair treatment, dignity, and a secure future.
