More Greeks Paid Off The Books

Already bashed by pay cuts, tax hikes and slashed pensions during a crushing economic crisis, many Greeks are now being forced by their bosses to accept pay under the table so the employer can save on taxes and social security contributions,  leaving workers with reduced health care and borrowing ability.
In a detailed report, the news agency Reuters reported on the plight of a number of workers who said they are angry they are being forced to accept the arrangement under the threat of losing their jobs.
One dietician said she was told she would be fired from her position at a health center unless she agreed to taking part of her pay off the books, fearful she would join the ranks of the country’s two million people without work. A crushing economic crisis exacerbated by austerity measures has put unemployment at a record 26 percent, more than 55 percent for those under 25 year old.
“It’s not just psychological war, it’s abuse,” she said. “I get fewer social security vouchers and I can’t get a loan because my salary on paper is so low. But they tell us if we talk about this, we’ll lose our jobs.”
Reuters said that data suggests informal work in Greece – which already has one of the largest underground economies in the Eurozone – is rising quickly, fueled by both cash-strapped businesses trying to save on contributions to the state and desperation among job-seekers.
In the first half of the year informal workers accounted for 35 percent of about 30,000 employees during checks by the SEPE agency that inspects firms, up five percentage points from 2011. More than half of them were Greeks and 41 percent were migrants.
Most of them were employed in the construction sector or in family businesses like restaurants, cafes, bars and shops. The number of self-employed in Greece – another indicator of the rise in informal work – now stands at 31 percent of workers, twice the euro zone average, says Athens-based think-tank IOBE. “When the recession is so deep, labor rights are among the first to be sacrificed,” said SEPE Director Michalis Kandarakis. “They become less important for employers,” he said.