In Brief
BANK ACTION
Monday strike to go ahead after unionists pull out of pension talks Unionists representing the country’s bank employees yesterday withdrew from negotiations with government officials on pension reform, stressing that a 24-hour strike scheduled for Monday would go ahead. Unionists have rejected an Economy Ministry proposal which they say will lead to the harmonization of bank workers’ pensions with the Social Security Foundation (IKA) within the next five years and raise the retirement age while reducing the size of pensions. SEXUAL HARASSMENT Woman who accused boss is sacked The General Confederation of Greek Labor (GSEE) yesterday condemned the alleged decision of a Greek company to dismiss a female employee, who had accused her supervisor of sexual harassment, as well as three fellow employees who had backed her claim. GSEE called upon the Thebes-based Hays Logistics Hellas to «immediately revoke these illegal dismissals and impose the appropriate penalties upon the supervisor.» US nukes The United States removed the last of its nuclear bombs from Greece early in President George W. Bush’s first term, according to a study by a private US defense council made public on Wednesday. Transmitter crackdown A Thessaloniki misdemeanors court yesterday passed down one-year jail sentences on 17 radio station owners and officials for illegally setting up radio transmitters in the area of Hortiatis. The court also imposed a fine of 10,000 euros on each official and ordered the confiscation of all their broadcasting equipment. Residents of Thessaloniki municipalities have long been calling for the removal of dozens of transmitters that they say pose a health risk. Iraqi army Greece has donated 300,000 euros for the training of the Iraqi army by NATO forces but will not be contributing in any other way, Defense Minister Spilios Spiliotopoulos said yesterday at the conclusion of a NATO defense ministers’ summit in Nice. NATO is aiming to gather a total of 3.5 million euros this year for the training of the Iraqi army. Rescue exercise A Super Puma helicopter joined two navy aircraft, coast guard vessels and National First Aid Center (EKAB) staff in an exercise to rescue 200 passengers and a 50-strong crew from a passenger ship supposedly taking on water off the Athens southern coastal district of Aghios Cosmas yesterday. Anastassiadis visit Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and the Greek Cypriot opposition Democratic Rally Party (DISY) said yesterday they would pursue closer dialogue in a bid to find a settlement on Cyprus. «In our talks, we decided to boost relations between our parties. Our target is a solution on Cyprus,» DISY head Nicos Anastassiades told a press conference in Ankara after talks with Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul and other senior AKP officials. (AFP) Turkish violations Nine formations of Turkish fighter jets yesterday violated Greek national air space in the central and northern Aegean 15 times before being chased off by Greek fighters, military sources said. Sex problems Most men seeking the opinion of sex experts are concerned with their own problems, whereas nearly half of women are worried about their partners – and their sons – according to figures released yesterday by the Center for Sexual and Reproductive Health in Thessaloniki. Most calls (81 percent) received by the center since it was set up in 1999 were from men.
