We have often said in this blog, that the economic crisis and the austerity measures are only for some Greeks. There is an elite of employees, close to political parties that do not seem to be affected by the crisis and the income decreases. In an exclusive story, Proto Thema, based on insurance fund IKA information, the ‘golden boys’ , the party officials at socialist PASOK and conservative Nea Dimokratia receive fat salaries ranging between €4,000 and €8,000 per month, inclusive crisis-resistant Christmas bonuses. Despite the fact that every other employee has suffered income decreases of more than 20%, despite the fact that both parties have together more than 250 million euro debts to the banks. And despite the fact at administration employees at least at PASOK have not been paid for several months.
Proto Thema: Bankrupt Parties with Golden Officials = The Golden Boys of PASOK and ND provoke
While salaries and pensions of the Greek people have cracked down, the two major parties provoke the public sentiment with the very high salaries of the narrow core of their leading officials.
The fact that PASOK and Nea Democratia owe to banks a total of 250 million euro and seek formulas to find a parliamentary passage of a favorable arrangement for their loans and mortgage the state grants of the future elections, does not seem to touch the “green” [PASOK] and “blue” [ND] golden boys.
With salaries ranging from €4,000 up to €8,000 euros in days of economic crisis and despite the unprecedented reductions in income of all workers, the elite of both parties in the coalition government seems to be completely out of line with the situation in Greek society.
Generous Nea Dimokratia
According to records kept by the IKA, the salaries of certain executives of Nea Dimokratia are more than challenging. The top golden boy is one party executive who receives € 8,000 gross per month for his services. His annual gross earnings amount 112,499.80 euro. In December 2011, he received the Christmas bonus [13th salary] an amount of 8333.20 euros. Proto Thema reports about the salaries of four-five more party executives.
PASOK: Two-Classes of Employees
Socialist PASOK is not as generous as conservative ND, however here employees seem to be paid on an scheme of two speeds. Employees of the level 800-1,000 euro per month have been unpaid for several months. On the other side of the salary list are those earning better, however not as much as those at ND. The salaries are between 4,750 and 3,500 euro.
As some of the highly paid employees at both parties are journalists (i.e. press officers, press advisers) Proto Thema notes that they would receive such salaries in the private sector as well. But the others “could not dream of such salaries even in their wildest dreams”.
