Greek debt crisis faces double blow of brain drain and early retirement - by Helena Smith
"Η Ελλάδα έχει ήδη ένα τεράστιο δημογραφικό πρόβλημα, λόγω της γήρανσης του πλυθησμού. Το ερώτημα τώρα είναι: Θα μπορέσει το εθνικό σύστημα κοινωνικής ασφάλισης να τα βγάλει πέρα, άμα φεύγουν οι νέοι";
A tourist in Athens. Greece faces high pension costs but its young workforce is emigrating. Photograph: Petros Giannakouris/AP
Efforts to overhaul Greece's near-bankrupt social security system, one of the biggest drains on its debt-stricken economy, have been hit by two new blows: young Greeks migrating and older ones demanding to retire before the rules change.
As striking unionists brought the country to a halt and tens of thousands took to the streets today in protests over planned pension cuts, the socialist government faced mounting pressure over an unprecedented, and potentially explosive, dilemma.
For the European Union and International Monetary Fund, which have agreed to the biggest bailout in history – loaning €110bn (£94bn) to Athens over three years to prevent it defaulting on debt that this week officially exceeded €310bn – change is essential to consolidate the public finances that have brought Greece to the brink of insolvency.
But with public servants braced to work an extra decade and the basic retirement pension slated to be only €360 a month by 2020, Greek authorities have been deluged with requests for early retirement.
Since the prime minister, George Papandreou, agreed to the reforms last month, about 150,000 state employees out of an estimated 800,000 have applied to quit jobs they might otherwise have held for life. Last week, as the magnitude of the scramble hit home, the labour minister appealed for them to stay in their posts.
Hit by soaring unemployment, exacerbated by the draconian austerity measures demanded in return for international aid, Greece's economy is also dealing with an equally unexpected flight of labour.
In recent weeks thousands of mostly young, educated Greeks have applied to move abroad, with the UK, USA, Canada and Australia reportedly among the most favoured destinations.
Record-breaking unemployment among the younger generation and rising poverty have spurred the brain drain. According to the national statistics bureau, the jobless rate rose to 12.1% in February; the majority of the 650,000 out of work are graduates aged between 25 and 34.
The closure of factories, enterprises and some 65,000 small and medium-sized businesses has also prompted thousands of foreigners to flee, with many in Greece's Polish community heading to Britain.
"I love this country but there is simply no future here," said Magda Vitorec, who moved with her parents from Poland to Athens in 2000 at the age of 18. "After his construction business closed, my [Polish] husband went to England and soon I will follow with my two children."
Nearly one in four Greeks lives beneath the poverty line. Ioanna Tsiganou, at the National Centre for Social Research, said: "Young Greeks, who know foreign languages and are highly skilled but have no prospect of employment here, are applying by the thousands to work abroad.
"It's a new trend but one that we believe will worsen. Greece already has a huge demographic problem because of its ageing population and the question now is will the national security system be able to cope if the young are leaving?"
Efforts to overhaul Greek economy undermined by deluge of requests to retire early, while young graduates rush to emigrate
A tourist in Athens. Greece faces high pension costs but its young workforce is emigrating. Photograph: Petros Giannakouris/APEfforts to overhaul Greece's near-bankrupt social security system, one of the biggest drains on its debt-stricken economy, have been hit by two new blows: young Greeks migrating and older ones demanding to retire before the rules change.
As striking unionists brought the country to a halt and tens of thousands took to the streets today in protests over planned pension cuts, the socialist government faced mounting pressure over an unprecedented, and potentially explosive, dilemma.
For the European Union and International Monetary Fund, which have agreed to the biggest bailout in history – loaning €110bn (£94bn) to Athens over three years to prevent it defaulting on debt that this week officially exceeded €310bn – change is essential to consolidate the public finances that have brought Greece to the brink of insolvency.
But with public servants braced to work an extra decade and the basic retirement pension slated to be only €360 a month by 2020, Greek authorities have been deluged with requests for early retirement.
Since the prime minister, George Papandreou, agreed to the reforms last month, about 150,000 state employees out of an estimated 800,000 have applied to quit jobs they might otherwise have held for life. Last week, as the magnitude of the scramble hit home, the labour minister appealed for them to stay in their posts.
Hit by soaring unemployment, exacerbated by the draconian austerity measures demanded in return for international aid, Greece's economy is also dealing with an equally unexpected flight of labour.
In recent weeks thousands of mostly young, educated Greeks have applied to move abroad, with the UK, USA, Canada and Australia reportedly among the most favoured destinations.
Record-breaking unemployment among the younger generation and rising poverty have spurred the brain drain. According to the national statistics bureau, the jobless rate rose to 12.1% in February; the majority of the 650,000 out of work are graduates aged between 25 and 34.
The closure of factories, enterprises and some 65,000 small and medium-sized businesses has also prompted thousands of foreigners to flee, with many in Greece's Polish community heading to Britain.
"I love this country but there is simply no future here," said Magda Vitorec, who moved with her parents from Poland to Athens in 2000 at the age of 18. "After his construction business closed, my [Polish] husband went to England and soon I will follow with my two children."
Nearly one in four Greeks lives beneath the poverty line. Ioanna Tsiganou, at the National Centre for Social Research, said: "Young Greeks, who know foreign languages and are highly skilled but have no prospect of employment here, are applying by the thousands to work abroad.
"It's a new trend but one that we believe will worsen. Greece already has a huge demographic problem because of its ageing population and the question now is will the national security system be able to cope if the young are leaving?"
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