Greek police clash with shipyard workers
- 12 years ago
Greek police clashed with protesting shipyard workers who stormed the Defence Ministry complex in Athens on Thursday demanding back pay.
About 250 workers from the Hellenic Skaramangas shipyard (HSY) forced their way into the complex by pulling up a metal shutter and stood in the ministry's grounds chanting "We want solutions, not layoffs!".
The head of the army's general staff, General Mihail Kostarakos, came out to address the protesters but was booed and heckled.
Scuffles broke out when police surrounded the workers and used truncheons to beat them back and pepper spray.
Several arrests were made, one man could be seen being dragged away by police as he tried to enter the ministry building.
The workers allege that they have not only had their wages cut but have also not been paid for six months because the near-bankrupt Greek state has not paid the shipyard's owner, Abu Dhabi Mar. The company was not immediately available for comment.
Protests have been picking up in recent days against austerity cuts that Greece has promised its European Union and International Monetary Fund lenders in a bid to get aid to keep afloat.
About 250 workers from the Hellenic Skaramangas shipyard (HSY) forced their way into the complex by pulling up a metal shutter and stood in the ministry's grounds chanting "We want solutions, not layoffs!".
The head of the army's general staff, General Mihail Kostarakos, came out to address the protesters but was booed and heckled.
Scuffles broke out when police surrounded the workers and used truncheons to beat them back and pepper spray.
Several arrests were made, one man could be seen being dragged away by police as he tried to enter the ministry building.
The workers allege that they have not only had their wages cut but have also not been paid for six months because the near-bankrupt Greek state has not paid the shipyard's owner, Abu Dhabi Mar. The company was not immediately available for comment.
Protests have been picking up in recent days against austerity cuts that Greece has promised its European Union and International Monetary Fund lenders in a bid to get aid to keep afloat.