Today,Friday, 27th September is the WorldTourism Day
On this daythehotel and tourismcapital in Greecewill heightenthe celebrationsfor this year’sgoodtourism season, withan arrivals’ recordof 17.5milliontourists and revenue of 11.5billion euro.
On this daythe governmentwill repeatonce again the fact thattourism canlead the country outofthe crisis andhow closewe areto the intendeddevelopment.
What none of them will sayis:
• How much of the11.5 billionwentto the employees or to the thousands ofdesperateself-employedof the industry?
• How many ofthe workersin the country,the poorfarmers, smallshopkeeperswent onholidayto their hotels, orswam even once at their privatebeaches.
We can give them the answers according to the data they publish:
• 762million were increased the travelrevenuesonly during the first7 monthsof the year 2013(data fromthe Bank of Greece).
• 3,6%fewer workersfound a job(in the second quarter of the year 2013) during an arrivals’ record year(data from ELSTAT).
• Nobodyknows better thanus how many people were crippled during thisseasonat the modernsweatshops, behind theshowcase ofexpensivehotels, how many peoplequit, unable to stand theintensification, working for five persons each.
• Andthose whoremaineduntiltoday are still waitingto be paid (previous year’s salaries) or at best case took only 400or 500euro.
• 73% of the Greekpeopledid not goonholiday at all andtheremaining 27% visited relatives or friends.
This is thegrimreality today, butnot only this.The worse iswhat weexpect fromnow on:
More than200,000workersof the tourism industrywillspendawinterwithoutunemployment benefit. Thegovernmentwill force them topay for theirelectricity,water,dosesto the tax office, the new hikes, and ticket in the hospitals, medicine and education of their children.Most of them will remainunpaidanduninsuredfor the entireseason.
Thehotel employeeswill be forcedfromhoteliersto acceptwage cutsin January 2014, whenthe collective employment contracts end in order to “boost the competitiveness ofGreektourism”to ensureevengreater profits“for those who will save Greekeconomy”.
Workers inFood and Catering, who worksincelast Augustwithhungerwages, lower than 586euro, will bethrowninto unemployment, either becausebig businessmenafter havingsqueezed them, will choose tograbfreelabor ofyoung people through apprenticeships,or because even afew thousandssmall shops will close, because they cannotstand the competition againstlargechains. Those who will continue working,will experiencethe usualfor the industryuninsuredwork, the job rotation, and the modern workingmedieval period.
Onthiscanvasthe government and SETEhave designedunder the help oftheEU the “Tourism Strategic Plan2021“, with new subsidies, land use changes, privatization andconcessions of ports,coasts, forestsetc.Theemployees, whowill notgo on holidayand recreation, will be left out of this plan.Many of themwill givesweatandblood in order to build thenew touristiclandscape, which will have space for even fewer people, representativesof multinationalsand thelocalandforeignplutocrats.What theycall “qualitative tourism” is nothing but anexpensiveandunstablecommodity,that doesn’t servethe need forreplenishmentof labor powerfor the worker, the people’s needs,the elevationof popular culture.
Thistourismis being celebrated bythose whohave imposedthiscruelexploitatingsystem.
We, theworkersin the tourism industry,have a dutyand an obligation to highlight not only the problems andbottleneckscreatedby their owncapitalisticpath of developmentfor the people,but alsoour own positionasproducersof this wealth.
OnFriday, 27th September 2013 we, the workersof the industry, assemblein Atticaat 4:30PMat Klafthmonos Square. We send a message to the bigemployersand the government that theywill not finish up easilywith us.
We claim:
• The unemployment benefit of seasonal workers that was cut in order to begivenin the form offreeworktobighoteliers.
• Signing ofCollective Employment Agreementfor workersin hotelsandFoodwithoutwage’s and entitlements’ cuts and with coverageof the losseswe hadfrom the implementationof the previousCollective Employment Agreementfor the hotels.Restoration of the Collective Employment Agreement obligatoriness.
• Revocation of allanti-security laws thatforce themajority ofworkers in the industryin 80years of workfor thelowest pension. Restoration of heavy and unhealthy professions inthespecialties that were abolished.
• Validation of sickness insurance carnetsof unemployed people withoutterms and conditions
• Revocation of taxes and hikes that savage our scanty income.
• Strictlyfree publichealth and welfarefor everyone.
• Strictly free publiceducationfor childrenof the working–class families.
THEREFORE WE,THE SECTOR’S UNIONS, CONCENTRATEAND DEMONSTRATE
ON FRIDAY27TH SEPTEMBER2013
FOR OUR RIGHTS AND DEMANDS
