Greek airline workers hold runway protest, ground flights (Roundup)

Oct 30, 2008, 14:03 GMT

Athens - Hundreds of Olympic Airline staff blocked one of the main runways at Athens' International Airport on Thursday during a 24-hour strike against government plans to privatise the ailing airline, forcing the cancellation of nearly 100 domestic and international flights.

Carrying black banners and shouting 'never, never, never,' hundreds of Olympic workers blocked one of Athens airport's two runways.

Delays were kept to a minimum as many of the flights were diverted to the second runway.

The 24-hour strike by flight crews forced the cancellation of approximately 100 flights to European destinations including London, Rome, Brussels and Frankfurt.

Last month, the Greek government launched a tender to sell off the airline, saying it would find new public sector jobs for its workers.

Officials have said Qatar Airways is among investors interested in the sale, but union leaders have pledged to halt the privatization.

Apart from airport staff, employees at Athens' Metro also called a one-day strike and workers at the national rail service walked off the job for three hours to protest the conservative government's economic polices which they say will cut jobs and pensions.

The conservative government, under the leadership of Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis, said it will push forward with reforms and privatizations despite union opposition.