Greece’s case is directly linked to Europe’s future while collective bargaining is a fundamental labour right, UN International Labour Organisation (ILO) Director-General Guy Ryder said on Friday, in statements as he was leaving a meeting with Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras at the Maximos Mansion in Athens.
Welcoming Ryder, Tsipras noted that this visit came “at an extremely critical time for Greece in its efforts to recover” and gave a “strong symbolic message that our efforts to stop a seven-year state of exception from European best practices on labour rights must be vindicated.”
The prime minister expressed his conviction that with this broader support for Greece, “developments indicate that we will likely have a good result in the negotiations underway for the second review.”
Ryder, on his part, assured Tsipras of the ILO’s continued involvement in Greece, noting that there had been “significant cooperation in recent years, in difficult conditions for the country.” He said the ILO felt a strong sense of responsibility to ensure a correct response to the labour aspects of the crisis.
Referring to collective bargaining, social dialogue and labour relations, Ryder noted that these were values that were supported by Europe, not just the ILO, and that this social cooperation was at the “heart” of the European project.
Equal access to Europe’s social acquis
Leaving the meeting, Ryder said that the right to collective bargaining was one of the fundamental labour rights that the ILO defends. “We believe that respect for this right, and taking it into account, is an important part of the consideration, not just for the Greek players (government, employers, workers) but also for your international partners,” he told reporters, adding that the ILO will “strongly support” this case.
He was also clear that Greece should have the same labour rights as the rest of Europe, pointing to the reply given by European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker on whether Greece had equal access to Europe’s social acquis.
Ryder said the meeting with Tsipras had focused on continued cooperation between Greek authorities and the ILO “in the face of certain major challenges” ahead. One of these, he noted, was the future of labour relations in Greece and issues relating to collective bargaining and setting the minimum wage.
The ILO director-general said it was important to link specific conditions in Greece with the future of Europe and the European social model. “The future of Europe must be strongly based on the social values that made it successful for decades,” he said, adding that Greece’s case was directly linked to Europe’s future.
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