Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis promised increases in pensions and the minimum wage as part of a €5.5 billion relief package announced Saturday that aims to cushion the impact of the energy crisis and inflation.
The pensions increase would be the first since the country’s financial crisis erupted more than a decade ago. It would benefit some 1.5 million pensioners.
The minimum wage would rise next year, most likely in May 2023, Mitsotakis said.
Greece’s has increased the minimum salary twice in 2022 with the monthly gross minimum wage currently at €713 per month, still lower than the level it was before the crisis. The country lags behind most advanced economies in offering well-paid jobs, according to the OECD.
The country is facing high inflation, which remained in double-digits for a fifth consecutive month in August at 11.4 percent.
Mitsotakis made the announcement while speaking to an audience of businesspeople and politicians at the annual trade fair in Thessaloniki, Greece’s second-biggest city, after Athens. The ruling New Democracy government faces elections in 2023 and the speech was largely seen as a kick-off for the pre-election period.
“I know that the months ahead are election months,” Mitsotakis said. “I will therefore make no secret of the fact that our big choices are now clearer than ever: Either we keep moving forward or we turn back.”
The €5.5 billion cost-of-living relief package also includes, among other things, a one-off handout of €250 for vulnerable households, a €300 million increase in a heating subsidy for 1.3 million homes, and a €1.8 billion plan to help young people rent or purchase a house.
