Greek public services came to a grinding halt on Thursday as the civil servants went on a 24 hour strike to protest the austerity measures proposed by the European Union and the IMF.
The strike was pervasive as even the hospital workers did not come to work with hospitals running on emergency staff only. Flights to and from Greek airports were planned to be grounded for four hours from 1200 to 1600 according to Greenwich Mean Time. Tax offices, public schools, post offices and other services were shut down as workers joined the strike.
A march to the parliament was planned by the protestors but only about 3,000 Greeks participated, raising concerns about the popularity of the strike appeal. The peaceful protest culminated near the parliament where protestors chanted slogans against the IMF bailout and austerity measures and called for taxing the rich.
Greece has received 110 billion euros, or around $154 billions, in bailout money in what was a combined deal by the EU and the IMF. Under the bailout, the Greek government cut wages of civil servants on an average of 15 percent and put a freeze on the pensions besides increasing the taxes.
Public participation has dwindled as the number of general strikes reached six with many staying away due to violence and the lack of any change that the strikes were expected to bring in. Greek economy is expecting a contraction of 2.6 percent in 2011, after seeing a 4 percent dip in the current year.
