Public sector wages and pensions might not be paid

PASOK members are following the current developments with bowed heads, the citizens with amazement and anger.

- Papandreou: everything will be fine as long as there are no major surprises

- Venizelos: Greece will not become Europe’s scapegoat

- Ollie Rehn: these measures are nor enough and the government cannot implement them.

- Troika: eliminate collective labor agreements in the private sector

- Eurogroup: there won’t be a meeting on October 13 for the 6th tranche

- Papandreou: we will not become India

- FT: Papandreou must resign

- Elias Mossialos: this is nonsense

- Reuters: Greek bankruptcy might come in November

- Pangalos: we cannot implement new taxes

- Andreas Loverdos: I suggest we all read Simitis’ article (on the return to the drachma)

All this on the day of the budget submission and one day after the decision on redundancy. It is quite clear that either the government is not keeping to its agreements with the Troika, or that the Troika is changing direction, or something else is going on and they serving it to us in installments. The government’s hope for taking over the wheel, though, has proven to be false.

With the 6th tranche being moved back to November, one cannot be certain about the payment of wages and pensions on October 15, 22, 24 or 31. Venizelos has said that without the 6th tranche public funds will dry out within October, without specifying exactly when.

The government will try to persuade the Troika by announcing the supplementary pension cuts and the revision of the list of heavy and unhealthy professions in the multi-bill that will be submitted on Thursday and which will include the arrangements on redundancy.

After Venizelos, who revealed the ministers that were cautioned by the Troika about their delays, Pangalos replied to the remark that we have reached redundancy because he did not proceed with the mergers. “I am not a minister, so I don’t have ministerial initiative. This is the job of a minister”, he said, and added that he will find a way to pay the extra contribution.

PASOK’s financial PLS will meet in this climate tomorrow and the MPs seem determined to ask for the whole truth from the finance minister. Why are the decisions for measures followed by pressure for new measures? In order to keep things on track, Maximos Mansion is thinking of  turning today’s meeting between Papandreou and MPs of eastern Macedonia and Thrace into a political event. That is, make his speech an intervention on all open issues that are troubling the ministers, the MPs and above all, the citizens.

Regarding the Troika requirement to cut wages in the private sector, the government is attempting a new maneuver, throwing the ball to the negotiations between employers and employees and saying it will increase competitiveness by decreasing the wage cost, which is insurance contributions, a move that will blow the funds up. And what does this translate to?

New cuts in wages and pensions.