Athens in ERT breach of EU law? [EXCLUSIVE]
The surprise closure of Greece's public broadcaster may be in breach of European Union labor laws according to European Commission sources and labour law experts. New Europe has been told by Commission sources that they believe Prime Minister Samaras' sudden decision to shut down Hellenic Radio and Television ERT on June 11 and pull the programme off the air just a few hours after the announcement, is in breach of two European Directives that have also been transposed into Greek law.
Over 2,500 workers have been effectively laid off with the closure of ERT's national television channels, national and regional radio stations, website, archive and musical groups. An early evening announcement by government spokesman Simos Kedikoglou was followed by an 11:15 shut down of all ERT activities - even though protesting employees have refused to leave the building and continue with clandestine broadcasts, relayed though Greek and international media, including the European Broadcasting Union.
The abrupt end of ERT, without any consultation is in breach of two European directives, Commission sources that do not want to be named have told NE: the 1998 Collective Redundancy Directive and the 2002 Information and Consultation Directive.
According to the Collective Redundancy Directive, which was transposed into Greek legislation in two separate laws in 1999 and 2000, where an employer is contemplating collective redundancies, he shall begin consultations with the workers’ representatives in good time, at least to cover ways and means of avoiding collective redundancies or reducing the number of workers affected, and of mitigating the consequences by recourse to accompanying social measures aimed aiding workers to find new work. The purpose of the consultation is to enable workers’ representatives to make constructive proposals and, as a result, they should in good time be supplied with all relevant information.
The Information and Consultation Directive, passed by the European Parliament in 2002, sets out minimum requirements for the right to information and consultation of European employees. It says that employees' representatives should be given information on the recent and probable development of their employer's activities and economic situation. It specifically mentions information relating to the development of employment within the organisation and any measures anticipated, in particular where there is a threat to employment. The directive was transposed into Greek law through a 2006 presidential decree that says the law is applicable to any private or public organisation.
ERT employees and their representatives say that they were in no way informed of the government's decisions until the announcement and that there was no possibility of consultation.
"We had no information and there was not consultation with either the government or the management," Nikos Tsimpidas, who represents ERT journalists at the Union of Journalists (ESIEA) tells New Europe.
"We had been asking for an appointment with the minister or with management because we were hearing scenarios that involved a significant and very quick reduction in staff and size. Instead the used an ERT frequency and an ERT crew to announce the closure of ERT," he adds.
A labour law specialist, who is also an employee of the Greek government and does not want to be named, has said there are grounds to think that Athens may be in breach of EU law. " It is possible that the closure of ERT as it happened goes against the rule of European law regarding workplace information and consultation and collective redundancies," the legal expert told New Europe.
On June 12 the Commission issued a press release pointing out, significantly, that it "expects the announced dismissals to be carried out in full accordance with the applicable legal framework."
Today, European Parliament President, Martin Schulz, urged the Greek government to allow ERT to continue broadcasting, describing the closure as a threat to Europeans' right to "the freedom and pluralism in the media."
On June 14 the head of Europe's public broadcasters also arrived in Greece to show support for ERT staff and demand from the conservative-led government put the stations back on the air. Jean-Paul Philippot, president of the Switzerland-based European Broadcasting Union, said he would meet later Friday with Greece's Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras to hand him a petition signed by 51 European broadcast executives calling for the broadcaster's signal to be restored immediately.
Signatories include the directors of Britain's BBC, Germany's ZDF and French Television.
"We are here because it's never happened in Europe. Since the EBU was created (in 1950) no government has cut the signal of a broadcaster," Philippot told reporters at a recording studio in the occupied ERT building.
ERT staff meanwhile have asked for Greece's highest court to issue a temporary injunction that would allow ERT to continue broadcasts until a legal challenge is tried in September. The decision is expected on Monday.
Meanwhile, under pressure both from his coalition partners and from European public opinion, PM Samaras appeared to be taking a step back late on Friday night. He issued a statement proposing that the administrator appointed to wind up the organisation should set up a committee that will hire a small number of people in order for public broadcasting to resume immediately. He also said that the draft bill his goveernment prepared to outline how a new public broadcaster would be set up could be passed through parliament next week. europe on line
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