Issues raised in connection with presidential decree for appointment artists in the state were at the center of the meeting in Maximos Palaceunder the prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis.

The focus of the meeting, according to the press service of the Prime Minister, was the issue of modernizing and improving the skills of art education (theater schools, dance schools, conservatories), which is recognized by the government as a key issue of the country’s policy in the field of education and culture. .

According to Megaros Maximos, during the meeting it was once again indicated that P.D. 85/2022 does not in any way change the mode of recruitment and remuneration of artists working in the state.

At the same time, it was decided to take an appropriate legislative initiative to determine the wages of actors and dancers providing artistic services to the population, by a joint decision of the ministers of finance, interior and culture, unifying the wages in a unified way. forecasts for all government bodies.

In addition, the meeting decided that the government should proceed in an orderly manner with both the promotion and classification of performing arts studies. As noted in the relevant communiqué, this complex case, which has remained unresolved for decades, is being prepared by Joint Committees with representatives from the ministries of education and culture and with the participation of well-known figures from the field of theater, dance and music.

The meeting was attended by Minister of Education and Religion Niki Kerameos, Minister of Culture and Sports Lina Mendoni, Minister of the Interior Makis Voridis, Minister of State Giorgos Gerapetritis, Minister of State Akis Skertsos, Deputy Minister responsible for Higher Education Angelos Sirygos, Deputy Minister for Modern Culture Nicolas Giatromanolakis, Deputy Prime Minister Yiannis Bratakos, Deputy Prime Minister and Government Spokesperson Yiannis Economou, Secretary General of Tax Policy Thanos Petralias, Secretary General of Vocational Education, Training, Lifelong Learning and Youth, George Voutsinos, Secretary General of the Department Contemporary Culture Eleni Dundoulakis, Secretary General for Public Sector Human Resources Vivi Haralamboyiannis, Secretary General for Coordination Thanasis Kontogeorgis, Head of the Prime Minister’s Economics Office Alexis Patelis and Ioanna Litrivi, Ethni Executive Director of the Organization for the Certification of Qualifications and Vocational Guidance (EOPPEP).

Earlier, government spokesman Yannis Oinonomou said the government was planning a comprehensive proposal for arts education. “PD is known to have corrected the distorted situation and our government is moving towards correcting this distortion. Especially for the issue of art education, a committee of individuals will be created, which will study in depth the issues of improving art education,” Mr. Oikonomu emphasized during a briefing for political editors.

It should be reminded that the specified decree of the President caused a reaction and mobilization from the artistic world, as it was believed that those who graduated from theater schools were equated to high school graduates. For his part, Deputy Minister of Culture Nicolas Giatromanolakis, after meeting with representatives of the artists, clarified that Presidential Decree No. 85/2022 does not equate the title of theater sketches with a high school diploma, does not apply to employment in the Ministry of Education and the recruitment of artists in the state, who excluded from ASEP.