At the exit of the Eleusis shipyards, about twenty kilometers from Athens, around ten exhausted workers kneel on the asphalt while waiting for their bus. They have resumed work since February when the American company Onex made an offer for the shipyards which have been very erratic since 2010.
After more than seven months of waiting, the Greek courts approved the buyout on Thursday October 19. Onex plans to mobilize 124 million dollars (117 million euros) to develop the site. A relief for some employees. “A great day has dawned for all of us, the workers”rejoices the group of workers from the Eleusis shipyards on Facebook.
“Today, the renaissance of Greek shipyards as an industry is taking shape. The biggest winners are and will be the employees who have fought for years”, reacted in the Greek media the CEO of Onex in Greece, Panos Xenokostas. The company has announced plans to repair up to two hundred ships of all types per year, with a focus on those carrying non-liquefied gas (LNG). A terminal was inaugurated nearby and, since the war in Ukraine, Greece has decided to become an LNG hub, to allow countries in the region to break away from their dependence on Russian oil.
For the conservative government of Kyriakos Mitsotakis, this recovery is a symbol. In April, during an event at the shipyard, the Minister of Development and Investment, Spyridon-Adonis Georgiadis, said to himself ” proud “ of the resumption of activities in this poor area of the Athenian suburbs, where unemployment is still close to 20%. “Investments in Greece have increased by 45% in the last four years”he insisted.
“Collective agreements abolished”
Dimitris, who did not wish to give his name, is delighted. Employed for ten years, he lived “galleys”had to take other small jobs on the side to get by. “For several years, we did not receive our full salary, that is to say, 850 euros net, but 500 euros one month, then 300 euros another month… And this, because the former owner had ‘huge debts and could no longer pay us. Now it’s back to normal, we can live again”estimates the forty-year-old.
Nearly 570 people work at the Eleusis shipyard, and the new owner estimates that, in a few years, 2,500 new direct and indirect jobs could be created thanks to the shipbuilding activity.
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