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Hotel strike over Olympic bonus


SPECIAL REPORT
• Olympics 2004: Special report 
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Olympics
Athens (Greece)
Strikes

ATHENS, Greece -- Hotel workers in Athens are staging a 24-hour strike to demand an extra bonus for working during the forthcoming Games.

The union representing about 7,500 employees launched the action Wednesday to press for an increase in their basic monthly wage. It threatened more walkouts in the runup to the August 13-29 Games if their demand was not met.

"We are prepared to strike during the Games period. We will go on strike again and again if hotel owners do not agree to a deal," Christos Katsotis, president of the Federation of Athens and Piraeus Hotel Employees, told Reuters.

Hotel owners said the one-day strike was not expected to disrupt business.

"It is a problem but it is not serious due to hotels' low occupancy rate," said George Tsakiris, president of the Athens Hotel Association.

Public transport workers in the Greek capital have also scheduled a walkout on Thursday in support of their demand for bonuses, according to The Associated Press.

The Greek government is trying to keep down Olympic costs, which are projected to top 10 billion euros ($12 billion).

But the hotel workers' labor unions are angry that the government is giving bonuses to the security forces during the Games, while the private hotel operators will pay only basic wages.

One hotelier said Wednesday's strike was affecting only the luxury hotels.

"I understand 90 percent of hotels are operating normally," Alexander Arapakis, owner of the family-run Dorian Inn, told the Press Association.

"Really it is the big five-star hotels which are mainly affected," added Arapakis, whose hotel in the center of the city will house many of the international media for the Olympics.


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