Freezes for at least the next two years any discussion of an increase in the minimum wage, in three years – that is, the seniority allowance received before 2012 by workers with minimal salary – her spring exhibition European Commissionthen the medium-term program presented by the ND government shortly before the dissolution of Parliament to the Commission.

Although in March last year, according to the Greek and European statistical authorities (ELSTAT and Eurostat respectively), it fell to 10.9%, and the number of unemployed now reaches 508,744 people, the Commission in its spring forecasts for our country “does not see “Immediate de-escalation of unemployment. On the contrary, he predicts a slow decline to just 11.8% by 2024.

Even more conservative is the forecast of the Stability Program submitted to the Commission, as it spoke of a three-year “unfreeze” of the minimum wage in the private sector, in the even more distant 2027. decrease to 11.8% in 2023 and decrease to 10.9% in 2024, 10% in 2025 and 9.8% in 2026.

But even in this year’s budget, economists estimate the unemployment rate in 2023 to be 12.7%.

It should be noted that in order for the three-year freeze to be unfrozen, the average annual unemployment rate must fall below 10%.

In fact, even in the pre-election period, Mr. Kostis Hatzidakis, when asked about this, did not rule out making any decisions at the end of 2023 and January 2024, provided, however, that unemployment falls below 10%. .

As experts explain, even if three years are unfrozen, the 10 percent allowance for three years will begin to count from this time period, and not retroactively from 2012, when they were “frozen”.

So, for example, an employee with 3 years of service as of January 1, 2012 and a salary increase of 10%, if three years had not been frozen, he should have received an additional 10% by January 1, 2015, i.e. completion of 6 years of work and an additional 10% on January 1, 2018 when working out 9 years of service, that is, a total increase of 30% (10% from the first three years and + 20% from the next two) . But at the end of February 2012, the 6th Law of the Cabinet of Ministers was passed, implementing the second memorandum and, along with a sharp reduction in the minimum wage, provides for a three-year freeze until unemployment falls to single digits.

In fact, even if this happens, say, in 2025, this does not automatically mean that time in our example will unfreeze starting from 2015. Although there are proposals to retroactively count three years if they were spent with the same employer, so far ND has not disclosed its papers. It is also unclear what will happen to the wage increase. Unless expressly provided for in an industry or operating agreement, unless there is an express provision in a new law, an employer may consider three years included in wages.