Three parties say no to cuts in the 13th and 14th salaries

Reducing government spending, supplementary pensions and reductions in salaries of private sector employees, were the issues discussed at the briefing table by Papademos and his ministers during the extended government meeting.

The PM stressed the need to cut more than two billion euros in public spending. This brought on an extensive discussion among the members of the cabinet, who discussed the reduction of costs in medicines as an example.

Regarding employment issues, the three parties affirmed their refusal to accept cuts in the 13th and 14th salaries and minimum wages. This issue also engedered a consensus to freeze increases and wage maturations. They also discussed the downward adjustment of sectoral agreements that have large deviations from the general collective one, with targeted reduction in business contracts. However, the three parties agreed that the social partners’ agreement must come first.

Regarding reductions in supplementary pensions, it seems they found common ground for scalable instead of horizontal cuts. In the coming hours, Employment minister George Koutroumanis expects proposals by ND and LAOS for an equivalent budgetary outcome of 150 million euros.

This is just hours before the most important meeting of the Labour minister with the Troika inspectors, which is scheduled for 10 am today and which will probably be dominated by the issue of salaries.