Representatives of French trade unions also attend rallies, emphasizing the pan-European solidarity of workers.
Thousands of Greek workers, primarily from various leftist parties and trade unions, marched in Athens on May Day.
While the main body of the protest was made up of the major trade union PAME and the Greek Communist Party (KKE), other leftist parties, including the main opposition SYRIZA and former Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis’ MeRA25 party and PASOK-KINAL, as well as numerous other associations, rights groups, and unions, also took part.
The central Syntagma Square demonstration began with Greek poet Vassilis Kolovos reading Don’t Speak, a poem by late Turkish writer Aziz Nesin.
KKE General Secretary Dimitris Koutsoumpas and PAME senior official George Perros spoke at the rally, lamenting the worsening living conditions of the working class amid the cost of living crisis and calling for a more united workers’ struggle.
The presence of French trade union representatives was notable. In a speech at the square, French trade unionist Olivier Mato emphasized the need for a pan-European working-class struggle.
On Monday, tram and metro workers, as well as maritime workers, including ship crews and port employees, went on strike for 24 hours.
Other May Day demonstrations took place in cities across Greece, including Patra, Thessaloniki, Larissa, and Heraklion.
