Strike 1

Today was supposed to be our first Art in Athens field trip to downtown Athens, but organized strikes downtown led to a cancellation and prevented us from leaving the area we are staying in. *Mom, please don’t worry these strikes are not violent. The cancellation of the trip was more of a precaution because we don’t speak very much Greek so just in case things escalated we were safe. There can occasionally be a hint of anti-Americanism in these situations if tempers should rise. I guess our field trip will have to wait until another day! 

Here’s the reason behind the strike: Greek doctors, prison staff and other state workers went on strike to protest public sector firings. The timing was meant to meet a visit to Athens by inspectors from the International Monetary Fund, the European Union and European Central Bank. The laborers plan to resist the government’s plans to reduce the size of the civil service through layoffs and transfer of workers. The Greeks are still struggling to bounce back from a 6-year recession and these job cuts are not helping the recovery. This is not the first strike from Greeks nor will it likely be the last. Most recently, electricity workers went on strike causing a power outage, although they were forced back to work shortly after.

In a time when tourist visits are at an all-time high, strikes of any kind could possibly hurt the strong tourist economy found here in Greece. A majority of Greeks depend on earning a majority of their income during these summer months and the strikes that keep tourists out of downtown Athens could end up hurting their business. 

Here’s an article with more information:

http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_wsite1_1_09/07/2014_541231