Olympic Airlines workers to stage 1 day strike

Workers at Olympic Airlines are staging a one-day strike on 30 October 2008 to protest a government proposal to privatize the carrier. In anticipation of the action, the airline canceled approximately 100 domestic and international flights. The action is affecting flights from Athens to London, Rome, Frankfurt, Brussels and Paris, among other locations. Thousands of workers staged a protest at Athens International Airport (LGAV/ATH) during the strike, blocking one of the airport’s two runways. Flights were diverted to the second runway during the action. A similar protest involving hundreds of workers took place on 29 October. Participants marched onto a taxiway, but there were no reports of significant disruptions to airport operations. Protesters did, however, scrawl graffiti on an aircraft owned by the company that will handle Olympic Airlines' assets during the proposed privatization. Meanwhile, additional work stoppages in the transportation sector are taking place on 30 October, including a one-day strike by the Athens Metro and a three-hour strike by the national rail service. Travelers and residents should anticipate transportation disruptions.