Catherwood LibraryILR School

Thousands of workers in Greece went on strike this past week, demanding for collective bargaining rights to be given to unions. Unions had collective bargaining rights before the financial crisis in Greece, but collective bargaining and other rights were temporary taken away during the recession in 2010-2018. In the European Union, collective bargaining and the right to strike are protected by the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. Workers are represented by the General Confederation of Greek Labor, and the strikes disrupted national rail services, stalled ferries, and caused worker shortages in hospitals around the country. Protestors gathered in Athens and Thessaloniki this week, and they rallied around the phrase “our rights are not utopia”.