Food service will ask for more support

Restaurant entrepreneurs will ask Finance Minister Christos Staikouras to suspend evictions until the end of the year and extend the rent reduction, though not horizontally but based on turnover reduction.

The reason that the Hellenic Association of Organized Food Service Enterprises (EPOES) will cite at Wednesday’s meeting with the minister is that turnover reduction reaches up to 70% in some cases, and a number of enterprises (especially those exclusively indoors or in shopping centers) have remained closed and will not reopen until July 15.

Although to date – per the picture EPOES has – there are only a few cases where a property owner and a food service enterprise have resorted to the courts over an eviction, what the sector fears is that as of August 1 the safety net will cease to exist as the protection measures have only been extended until end-July.

EPOES representatives told Kathimerini that some companies, after not working at all for many months, will suddenly have to start paying full salaries and rent in August, without even having the option of reducing their staff, which may well lead to shutdowns.