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The Committee notes the comprehensive information contained in the Government’s detailed report for the period ending in May 2005 as well as the replies in response to its 2003 direct request.

1. Employment trends and labour market measures. The Government indicates that for the period under consideration, the Greek economy has continued to grow rapidly, although this growth, quite fast in the run up to the Olympic Games, was slower in the second part of 2004. The rate of development rose by 4.7 per cent in 2003 and 4.2 per cent in 2004, exceeding by far the EU average. However, the economic growth has produced a limited effect in the field of employment. Total employment increased by 1.2 per cent in 2003 and 0.7 per cent in 2004, standing at 59.4 per cent of the population. But despite the increase in employment in 2004, the unemployment rate remained at a high level amounting to 10.5 per cent, with a female unemployment rate of 15 per cent, more than double that of men (6.2 per cent). In fact, the Government explains that the relatively low employment rate compared to the EU average (64.8 per cent) is due to a large extent to the very low employment rate of women and young persons. The Government further indicates that in accordance with the estimates of the updated Stability and Development Programme 2004-07, the employment rate should grow by 1.5 per cent yearly and the unemployment rate should fall by 0.5 per cent.

2. The basic component of the Greek employment policy is set forth in the guidelines of the European strategy and laid down in the 2004 National Action Plan for Employment, which puts emphasis for the first time equally on labour supply and demand. To this end, the reinforcement of the demand of several types of work and professional skills is emphasized as the major guideline of the Greek employment strategy, so that development may create new jobs to absorb unemployment. The role of development and taxation policy in the improvement of the business and investment climate is also stressed. The Government indicates that in order to promote the creation of new jobs, Act No. 3299 was adopted in 2004 and provides for the introduction, for the first time as an incentive, of a subsidy of the wage cost of new jobs created through investments. The Government also adopted in 2004, Act No. 3250 on part-time employment which allows the public sector and local self-government agencies to hire staff bound by a fix-term contract for part-time employment to meet the needs of citizens for social services. According to this Act, persons have to be recruited from particular social groups such as: unemployed persons over 30 years of age who have exceeded the period during which they were entitled to a regular unemployment benefit; unemployed persons who need to work for another five years in order to be entitled to pension; unemployed persons under the age of 30; mothers of under-aged children and persons with disability. With regard to measures to meet women’s special needs in employment, the Government indicates that in all the programmes designed to increase employment and reduce unemployment implemented by the Employment and Labour Organization (OAED), priority is given to women since 60 per cent of the posts to be filled are covered by women. The Committee asks the Government to continue providing information on the labour market policy initiatives referred to in the report and their impact on employment creation, particularly the success rates of the measures implemented with a view for transferring part-time workers, women and youth into lasting employment (Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention).

3. Participation of the social partners. The Government reiterates that it endeavours to maintain and develop relations with the social partners, particularly in the context of the OAED. An example is the programme on integrated interventions, the implementation of which provides for the creation of a supporting structure, in which representatives of employers, employees, the OAED and the prefecture where the enterprise for which the specific programme is located, participate. The Committee trusts that the Government will continue to provide updated information on the manner in which the representatives of the persons affected are consulted with regard to employment policies (Article 3).