Greece workers launch 24-hour strike on Labour Day

Workers in Greece launched a 24-hour strike on Thursday to mark Labour Day, suspending ferry and train services across the country, dpa reported. Thousands of tourists were left stranded as ferries were cancelled to and from the main ports of Pireaus and Rafina. Seamen are protest against changes to their collective contract agreements. Thousands of private and public sector workers were preparing to gather in cities to protest against government spending cuts. Recession-hit Greece has a record unemployment level of nearly 28 per cent. About 1,000 police officers were deployed in Athens for the demonstrations.