Ministry of Labour

Freshly installed Labor Minister Violeta Alexandru announced the downsizing of the ministry as well as serious checks on the situation of the pensions budget, given that according to her, the Social Democrat rule has left it with a worrisome deficit.

The Labor Ministry's new leadership has set itself a major challenge, which is to digitally transform the social security system and be able to issue new pensions within a day.

The implementation of the Health and Education for All program improved access to social, health and educational services for young Roma families and enabled 2500 children between 3 and 5 years of age to regularly attend kindergartens and preschool groups.

More than 36,000 applications had been submitted for the Labor Ministry's new debt settlement scheme by Friday morning, less than 10 days after the platform for submissions was launched.
The applications come from non-salaried workers who owe money to their healthcare and pension providers and are seeking to settle those debts in up to 120 installments.

A prominent conservative MP and former minister, Yiannis Vroutsis, on Tuesday called on the Labor Ministry to respond to allegations that its online system for Single Social Security Fund (EFKA) pension applications was tampered with and thousands of applications removed.

A harsh social security reform with cuts to rights and handouts is slowly being planned at the Labor Ministry, with the drafting of the new Single Regulation for Social Security and Benefits of the Single Social Security Entity (EFKA).

Greece's jobless rate is seen averaging at an alarmingly high level of 18.2 percent in 2019 despite the continued increase in employment (at a rate estimated at 1.4 percent this year), spurring the brain drain phenomenon.

A 900mln gap divides the Quartet (EU institutions+IMF) and the Greek Labour Ministry, after Saturday’s meeting in Athens.

Under the new Labour Ministry restrictions, Montenegro will issue only 23,400 work permits for foreigners in 2015. Montenegro issued more than 25,000 work permits in previous years.