Hotel workers' strike threatens Olympics

Hotel workers in the Athens area staged a 24-hour strike today to demand a doubling of wages and an Olympic bonus promised to security staff for this month’s games.

It was the sixth work stoppage in the past month by the union, which includes cleaning staff and kitchen workers.

“Our union will meet to decide whether to strike during the games,” union leader Christos Katsiotis said.

The hotel workers’ union is demanding a monthly minimum pay rise from €492 to €1,098.

Workers at hotels reserved for Olympic officials will receive a bonus of €189, but the union says that is not enough.

The main hotel operators’ group called the strike “coercive” and the action “will succeed in creating negative publicity at a time when (greater Athens) is the focus of international interest”, the group said in a statement.

Despite the Olympics, tourism in Greece has dropped sharply, prompting government officials to call for an overhaul of vital services.