Bank union calls strike for Monday
Greek bank workers will hold a 24-hour warning strike today to protest decisions being made by international creditors and the government that may result in job losses.
The government ?must realize it doesn?t have the moral or political right to show weakness, ignore the historical moment for Greek banks and succumb to the pressures of the creditors,? OTOE, the bank union federation, said in a faxed statement on Friday.
OTOE said Greek banks, including state-controlled ATEbank and Hellenic Postbank SA, should all be recapitalized and that jobs should be guaranteed.
Lenders need recapitalizing after suffering losses on their holdings of government bonds in a debt swap.
Mergers would reduce costs and make banks more attractive to investors, Panayotis Thomopoulos, who heads the Hellenic Financial Stability Facility, said on July 2.
Prime Minister Antonis Samaras was briefed by European Union and International Monetary Fund officials on Friday on what they want done to bring Greece?s reform program back on track, government spokesman Simos Kedikoglou said on NET TV. Disbursement of bailout funds is linked to implementation of the program. [Bloomberg]
