The new Collective Bargaining Agreements being signed, as well as the upcoming event, to be held in Brussels with the participation of the Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, on the importance of the National Social Agreement, were the main focus of the interview with the Minister of Labor and Social Security, Niki Kerameos, on ERT television.
Ms. Kerameos referred to the processes that led to the signing the National Social Agreement between the government and the national social partners, with the aim of increasing the number of Collective Bargaining Agreements.
As he clarified, the negotiations lasted approximately nine to ten months and, in mid-February, the National Social Agreement was passed by the Parliament. “A month later, the new Collective Bargaining Agreements began to be implemented—what do they actually mean in practice?Wage increases, said the minister, who cited as an example the Collective Labor Agreement in the catering sector, “which had been stalled for a long time, was finally resolved thanks to the Social Agreement and has already been extended to 400,000 workers in the hospitality sector.”
Ms. Kerameos also mentioned another very recent signing of a new Collective Bargaining Agreement in the sector of food technologists, for the first time in 15 years. As she noted, the new Collective Bargaining Agreement covers up to 2,500 people in a sector that had also been stagnant in terms of signing Collective Bargaining Agreements.
Regarding the event to be held in Brussels with the participation of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, the Vice President of the European Commission and Commissioner for Employment, Roxana Minzatu , and the Minister, Ms. Kerameos explained that the goal is to highlight the Greek example ofSocial Agreement on Collective Agreements as a model to be emulated for Europe and all European member states.
“We will discuss in depth how this Social Agreement was achieved in Greece and what an example it sets overall for Europe in terms of social dialogue,” stated Ms. Kerameos, adding: “Where were we a year ago when we were discussing here just how far behind Greece really is in this area and lacks a culture of social dialogue, and how in just one year this picture is changing dramatically and suddenly Greece, despite the problems and the difficulties we face in our daily lives, is emerging as a model in a sector where, objectively speaking, it lacked a culture of social dialogue for many, many years.”
Regarding the Digital Work Card, the minister emphasized that the pilot implementation has begun in new sectors, such as private healthcare, employment services, telecommunications and smaller businesses, such as dry cleaners, hair salons, and funeral homes, while, by the end of the month, advertising agencies, consulting firms, and logistics companies—among others—are expected to be added, with the number of employees covered by the card—once its use becomes mandatory in these sectors this fall—expected to reach 2.5 million.
As he emphasized, “The Digital Work Card yields very significant results in three areas. First, it boosts workers’ incomes because all overtime is now recorded, ensuring that you are paid for that overtime. Second, it promotes healthy competition among businesses, because there are companies that do everything by the book and pay their contributions, and others that do not do everything by the book; and the latter distort competition. Third, revenue for social security funds increases, because as revenue in the social security funds rises, so does the so-called fiscal space, on the basis of which we can give back to society,” noted Ms. Kerameos.
Subsequently, the minister referred to the subsidized employment program for unemployed people aged 55 </and older and its upcoming expansion, stating that it is a program aimed at unemployed people aged 55 and older. “It’s true that if you find yourself out of work at this age, it becomes increasingly difficult to re-enter the labor market. So, as the government, what are we saying? We are subsidizing employment for the unemployed aged 55 and older, who very often are just a few years short of meeting the retirement requirements. "In the coming weeks, as we finalize the details, we will have news soon regarding a further extension of this program," he clarified.
Regarding the program for the employment of our fellow citizens with disabilities in municipalities and regions across the country, Ms. Kerameos said: “We are also running another program for our fellow citizens with disabilities. This is a vulnerable population group that faces barriers to accessing employment. That is why our job is to remove these barriers and facilitate their access to the labor market. To that end, we have established a new employment program for our fellow citizens with disabilities, which has so far served 2,000 of our fellow citizens with disabilities and was recently expanded last week to include another 1,000, bringing the total to 3,000 of our fellow citizens with disabilities who can work in municipalities and regions across the country.”
Regarding the ministry’s new bill on equal pay for women and men for work of equal value, the minister commented: “It is currently under public consultation, which concludes tomorrow, and we will then incorporate the comments and proceed with the bill in Parliament. To put it in a single sentence, here’s what this bill does. It has a basic principle: that your pay should be determined by your work and your value, not by your gender. Your gender can never play a role in your pay. What does that mean? That everything is equal and the same? That everyone gets equal pay? Of course not. If the two of us work at a company and you are much better, have more years of experience, and have better degrees, of course you will be paid more. But what does the bill—which is based on a European directive—say? That if the two of us have exactly the same job, the same responsibilities, and the same qualifications, then I cannot be paid 20% less simply because I am a woman.
We still have a pay gap of 13% in Greece and 11% in Europe. In other words, on average, women are paid 13% less than men in Greece. This must be eliminated,” emphasized Ms. Kerameos.
