Greek seamen extend strike after walkout against budget cuts

Thousands of protesters marched peacefully in Athens and other Greek cities on Thursday, joining the latest 24-hour walkout by Greece's two largest labor unions to protest the new set of budget cuts being debated.

Approximately 16,000 Greeks took part in the two main rallies organized in front of the parliament by ADEDY and GSEE, the two umbrella unions representing public and private sector employees, and PAME union, according to police estimates.

Public hospitals were operating with skeletal staff during Thursday's general strike, while schools and banks were closed and transport services from buses and trains to ships were disrupted.

The Pan-Hellenic Seamen's Federation (PNO) announced the extension of the seafarers' week-long strike by another two days to Sunday. Other trade unions were examining similar steps.

Ferries have remained docked at ports across Greece since Dec. 2, cutting off islands from the mainland, as seamen protest against the planned labor reform and the abolishment of their special tax breaks.

"From tomorrow we are escalating our actions. We will not allow them to pass these measures which are against workers," Grigoris Kalomiris, member of the directors board of ADEDY, said.

According to official statistics, a quarter of Greece's working force suffers from chronic unemployment, a quarter of Greek households is struggling at the threshold of poverty, and the average Greek taxpayer has lost about 40 percent of his income from the start of the debt crisis.

Ahead of the vote on the 2017 budget draft scheduled for Saturday, cabinet ministers reassured that the ailing economy is returning to growth and the most vulnerable groups of society will be supported. Enditem