Greek taxi drivers suspend strike

ATHENS (BNO NEWS) — Greece’s taxi drivers voted to end their strike on Friday, 19 days after they began their protest against the government’s plans to completely deregulate their sector, the Khatimerini newspaper reported.

Following several hours of talks, unionists decided by a vote of 16 to 6 to suspend the strike until details of the government’s plans to liberalize their sector are clear. Taxi owners and drivers, however, made it clear that they may call new strikes for September 5 if they object to the content of the government’s bill.

On Thursday, the taxi drivers received guarantees from regional governors that no more new taxi licenses would be issued until the government submits its draft law towards the end of the month.

The drivers vowed last Friday to continue with their strike after a meeting with Transport Minister Yiannis Ragousis failed to break the deadlock. The strike has damaged Greece’s tourism since protesters have been blocking ports, airports and roads.

Transport Minister Ragousis favors total liberalization of the sector but has yet to give details of his plans. The drivers want the number of licenses to be limited depending on the population of each city, according to the newspaper.

Ragousis announced a total liberalization of taxis just weeks after his predecessor, Dimitris Reppas, had announced a deregulation plan that would have placed a limit on the number of taxi licenses that would be issued.

Unionists representing taxi drivers around the country claim that relaxing limitations for entering the profession will result in an overabundance of drivers, putting a strain on a business already suffering from the economic crisis. They also say that the existing 300,000 taxis that are in circulation in the country are more than adequate to meet the public’s needs.

The recent liberalization is part of the country’s ongoing austerity reforms, which included tax hikes, wide-ranging reforms and accelerated privatizations. The approval of the program was fundamental for securing a new European Union bailout agreement.

Friday, August 5th, 2011

Source: WireUpdate.
Link: http://wireupdate.com/wires/19291/greek-taxi-drivers-suspend-strike/.