UPDATE: Weekend Strike at Museums, Archaeological Sites Suspended

UPDATE: A 48-hour strike announced by the employees of the Ministry of Culture and Sports during the weekend, July 29-30, has been suspended.

Museums and Archaeological sites in Attica will operate as normal during the weekend, July 29-30, as according to reports, the employees of the Ministry of Culture decided to suspend their strike action.

Their previous decision to hold a 48-hour strike caused a stir among tourism officials and sector professionals. “Think twice before such detrimental actions,” Tourism Minister Elena Kountoura said yesterday, while speaking to Athens 9.84 radio.

“All tourism stakeholders are concerned. These actions create problems for sector professionals. They [employees] must think twice about the strike… if they decide to proceed, it would mean thousands of tourists will find major sites and museums closed,” Kountoura said, adding that this would have a damaging effect on the sector.

The head of the Greek Tourism Confederation (SETE) Yiannis Retsos stressed through his Twitter account that it would be a “blow to tourism in Attica and to the image of Greece”.

The Athens – Attica & Argosaronic Hotel Association sent a letter to Culture Minister Lydia Koniordou calling for her immediate intervention, particularly now during Greece’s peak tourist season.

The plea was backed by the Federation of Greek Tourist and Travel Agencies (FedHATTA), which urged in a statement all those involved – ministries and employees – to take immediate measures in order to avoid causing inconvenience to the thousands of visitors to Attica at this time.