Hospital workers try to barge into finance ministry during rally

Tensions rose during a protest rally by public hospital workers outside the Finance Ministry on Thursday after they tried to break through a riot police line to enter the building in central Athens.

Television footage showed protesters pushing policemen to reach the entrance and raising the roller grilles. It was not clear if anyone managed to enter the building.

The union of public hospital workers (POEDIN) is holding a work stoppage in Attica from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. to protest against the unchanged funding for state-run hospitals in the 2019 budget.

“Public health expenditure is stuck at 5 percent of GDP and the hospital spending limit remains fixed at 1.5 billion euros per year, despite the fact that demand has risen by 30 percent in public hospitals,” the union said in a press release.