On Friday, October 18, 2024, the Minister of Labor and Social Security, Niki Kerameos, and the General Secretary of Labor Relations, Nikos Milapidis, held successive meetings with representatives of the Association of Greek Tourism Enterprises (SETE) and the Association of Greek Industries (SBE).

The meetings were held in the context of the dialogue cycle initiated by the minister, with the aim of the conclusion of the Scientific Committee on the method of determining the minimum wage and the promotion of collective negotiations, with the aim of incorporating the relevant European directive into national law.

As stated in a related announcement, a constructive dialogue was held, during which Ms. Kerameos recorded the positions and observations of the representatives of SETE and SBE, which will be taken into account in the formulation of the final bill for the integration of the European directive.

The first part of the Scientific Committee’s conclusion concerns the establishment of an automatic mechanism for adjusting the minimum wage using a mathematical formula, which will take into account objective and transparent economic data, such as inflation, especially for the 20% of the lowest income categories and wage growth in the Greek economy.

As the minister noted, the advantage of the specific model, which is applied in France, but also in seven other EU countries, is that it establishes a simple, objective, predictable, transparent and understandable way of adjusting the minimum wage, protects the purchasing power, particularly the bottom 20% of the household income distribution, lends predictability to the financial planning of workers and businesses and, ultimately, strengthens the credibility of the country’s economic and social policy.

The second part concerns the preparation of a road map to strengthen collective negotiations, with the aim of increasing the percentage of Collective Labor Agreements, which the government also seeks.

The head of the Prime Minister’s Economic Office, Alexis Patelis, also participated in the meetings. SETE was represented by the Chairman of the Board of Directors, Yiannis Paraschis, the Vice-Presidents, Lysandros Tsilidis, Eutychis Vassilakis and Kallinikos Kallinikos, the Secretary General of SETE and President of INSETE , Giorgos Vernikos, the general director of INSETE, Ilias Kikilias, the adviser to the president of SETE, Giorgos Ambrazis and the legal adviser of SETE, Nikos Zoitos.

The SBE was represented by the president of the Administrative Committee of the SBE, Loukia Sarantis, the first vice-president, Yiannis Stavrou, the legal advisor of the SBE, Giorgos Hatzigiannakis and the labor expert, Kostoula Mazarakis.

The Minister of Labor and Social Security, Niki Kerameos, said: “It is our belief that the path to further improving the working conditions of employees and strengthening entrepreneurship is through dialogue. We therefore continue the consultation with the social partners, with a view to defending the interests and rights of workers and businesses. Financial shielding, especially of the most economically vulnerable strata, but also the strengthening of collective bargaining, is a priority for our government and ensures the necessary stability in the labor market, a necessary condition for ensuring a healthy business environment and attracting investment”.