The Hellenic Federation of Enterprises (SEV) has proposed slashes in the average public sector wages over a ‘reasonable time period’. SEV argues the excessive public sector is a burden on the private sector, suggesting spending cuts through lay-offs and salary reductions. The organisation claims that the Greek public servants’ wages are disproportionately higher than those in other EU countries, pointing out that if meaures were adopted this would lead to a median salary reduction of 3% annually, while the median employment would mean a 50% reduction in personnel or 180,000 workers.

The higher average wage in the public sector compared to that in the private sector is not an exclusive Greek problem, as it occurs in other EU countries too. However, the problem in Greece is by far much worse than any other European country. Wages in the Greek public sector are 19% higher than in the private sector, compared to an average of 15% difference between the two sectors in the EU-28.

The average monthly net income for a Greek public servant is 1,050 Euros, compared to 780 Euros in the private sector, while 2015 saw an average rise of 1.5% in the salaries of public servants in comparison to a 1.1% fall in private sector wages.

Greece employs double the number of public servants in the inner state organisations (16%), as a percentage of the total employees in the wider public sector, compared to the EU-28, which has 8%. SEV argues the unraveling of the public finances had started during the 2002-2003, under the Simitis era of ‘social package’ and the construction of the large 2004 Olympic Games infrastructure projects.