Protests in Athens and Thessaloniki against Sunday store opening
Several hundred people held rallies at central shopping districts in Athens and Thessaloniki on Sunday to protest the opening of retail stores on the first Sunday of the winter sales, arguing that the deregulation of operating hours was in violation of workers’ rights.
In Athens, some 300 people rallied on Ermou Street, the shopping strip on Syntagma Square in front of Parliament, as consumers flocked to the sales.
In Thessaloniki, meanwhile, the protests were led by the local union for retail workers. Several dozen protesters gathered in front of the Carrefour supermarket in the Makedonia mall and urged shoppers not to enter the store in protest of the measure allowing trade on Sunday.
Separately, the association representing the region’s unemployed held a rally at Aristotelous Square.
