Thousands of passengers will continue to be stranded in the Aegean and Ionian islands after the federation of Greek Seamen (the PNO union) decided to extend its strike into Tuesday.
On Monday, the PNO rejected an improved employer’s proposal for a 2 percent raise in pay starting on 1 September 2018.
Reports say that the seamen’s union demands a 5 percent raise.
“Society is well aware that employers bear sole responsibility for this situation, by insisting on their barren bargaining positions and by refusing to grant a substantial increase to seamen’s salaries for eight consecutive years, thus literally forcing us to decide on strike action with a prospect of escalating this further,” PNO said in a statement.
Ferry companies condemned the decision and said that, according to their estimates, up to 300,000 travelers will be stranded in ports around Greece.
They also warn that the backlog of passengers and goods will take days to clear when the seamen call off their strike.
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