Larisa: Supermarket Chain Pays Employees With Food & Milk Instead of Salary

That some business in Greece face serious economic problems is no secret. That some employees keep working waiting for the salary for three to six or even more than ten months is not a secret too. That businesses close down because of sharp decrease of revenues is known to everyone here as well. But that some businesses try to pay employees with goods and not real money that’s really alternative. It could also be “revolutionary”, if employees could pay their real life utilities, loans, clothing, cinema visit, transport tickets and gasoline bills trading goods. A nice example would be to trade two bottles of milk against one litre of fuel and a dozen toilet paper rolls against for electricity consumption.
 But as this practice is not the case (yet?) in Greece, the “alternative payment” proposal of a supermarket in central Greece triggered a storm of reactions employees and trade unions.

The ownership of supermarket chain ”LARISA” in the city of the same name in central Greece, decided to pay at least half of each employees’ salary in food and beverages including milk in order to avoid spending cash.
According to employees union, the management announced that as

“from November onwards there will be no advance salary payment, but hitherto, the employees will be able to make purchases from the supermarket on credit and submit the receipts to the payroll office.Furthermore, that the employees could make purchases on credit up one months’ salary.”

Moreover the move was meant as a measure to avoid lay offs.
The Larissa Association of Employees and Retail denounced the ‘alternative salary payment’ as “blackmail and terrorization attempt” against the employees. “It is unacceptable that employers can put hand on the budget of every family, especially in such difficult times, where households constantly reduce their expenses for basic needs, like the monthly shopping at the supermarkets” the Association said in a statement.
I’m really curious how this dispute will end and whether the Labour Ministry will intervene.  Also I wonder with what ‘goods’ the employer would pay his employees, if he would be owner of a sewage company…