Greece’s catering sector plan to shut down their businesses for one week if the government does not take immediate support measures. The Greek Association of catering and entertainment PASKEDI has reportedly decided to shut down all facilities form September 16 to 22, as the only way to put pressure on the government to take immediate measures to rescue the sector’s companies. Attica said that ti will not join the action.
Speaking to media, PASKEDI president Niki Konstantinou said that they were led to such a decision following information that dozens of facilities have reached the point of selling even their houses in order to save their businesses, while others were forced into a padlock.
Konstantinou made clear that they do not oppose the measures to protect the public health, but “they fight to support the sustainability of our businesses.”
She stressed that thousands of seasonal workers were left without work this summer.
“The workers have a serious problem, 150,000 people were not hired in the seasonal companies this summer and there is not even a provision for zeroing the prerequisite [social security] stamps, in order to joint the unemployment fund and get the allowance in winter. How will these people survive?” she wondered.
Big problems with suppliers and property owners
“Suppliers can not credit us because there is a problem with our checks. The owners of the properties we rent also have a big problem because in our businesses we first collect and then pay the money. All we need is a series of entrepreneurial support measures to create jobs and come through the winter without reaching the level of famine,” Konstantinou underlined.
She added that sector workers received a state aid of 534 euros in June and that was all.
The only solution for the sector is “rescue measures here and now,” she stressed adding that also businesses that are open but must close at 12 midnight due to anti-coronavirus measures need support..
“If we need to close at 12 midnight, of course, we do it and we will also if they tell us to close even earlier. However, there should be provision for compensation of companies that are destroyed in that cases, such as bars, clubs, nightclubs. How will this huge number of companies with a large number of employees deal with all this?,” she said.
The PASKEDI wants support measures such as exemption from Municipality fees in 2020, the Municipal Tax, the fees for occupying public space.
The demands list of the Association is long and includes among others: rent reduction in the catering sector, reduction of VAT to 6% on food and coffee (as the New Democracy government had announced before the elections of 2019), tax rates at 10% without payment of taxes in advance for the following year, subsidy of all debts such as social contributions, music rights, etc
The PASKEDI action slogan is: We close Sept 16-22 in order to remain open.
The sector’s Union in Attica said late on Tuesday that it will not join the actions.
