Greek workers to hold 24-hour general strike against austerity measures

Greek workers will hold their first general strike since a coalition government came to power in June, as the country is suffering from deep recession and faces bankruptcy and a potential exit from the eurozone.

The 24-hour walkout on Wednesday, called by the two biggest unions in the debt-wrecked country that represent half the Greek workforce, is in protest against the government’s new spending cuts, which will slash wages, pensions and welfare benefits.

“We call on everyone to take part in the strike and resist the austerity measures that hurt Greek people and the economy,” said unionist Despoina Spanou of the civil servants’ union ADEDY, which is joined by the country’s largest trade union GSEE.

In addition to thousands of protesters including doctors, teachers and tax workers, public transportation workers and air traffic controllers are also set to participate with work stoppages in the protest, and railways, airlines and ferries are expected to face disruption in services.

Meanwhile, about 3,000 police forces have been deployed in the center of Athens to prevent a possible rioting.

The unions are furious at spending cuts worth nearly 12 billion euros (USD 15.55 billion) over the next two years that Greece has promised the European Union (EU) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in a bid to receive its next tranche of financial aid.

“This strike is only the beginning in our fight,” Spanou stated.

Greece has been in recession since 2009, despite the austerity cuts and the bailout funds, which have been aimed at stimulating growth for its troubled economy.

The worsening debt crisis has forced the EU governments to adopt harsh austerity measures and tough economic reforms, which have triggered incidents of social unrest and massive protests in many European countries.