A broad inter-ministerial meeting was held on June 19, 2026 at the Ministry of Justice and Public Order with the participation of the Minister of Justice and Public Order, Mr. Konstantinos Fytiris, the Minister of Finance, Mr. Makis Keravnos, the Minister of Health, Mr. Neophytos Charalambidis and the Minister of Labor and Social Insurance, Mr. Marinos Mousiouttas, as well as senior officials and officials of the four Ministries.
The purpose of the meeting was to examine issues related to the improvement of the performance and effectiveness of the public service, the protection of employees, as well as the addressing of long-standing distortions that affect the proper functioning of state services.
In this context, particular emphasis was placed on the issue of sick leave and ensuring the proper implementation of the relevant institutional framework. From the data presented, it appears that in some cases and categories of staff, absences due to sick leave are recorded which deviate significantly from the statistically expected levels, with consequences on the operational operation of the services, public costs and the balanced distribution of the workload among employees.
The participating Ministers underlined that the State has a non-negotiable obligation to fully and without any discrimination support the employees who face real health problems. The protection of health, human dignity and social solidarity is a fundamental principle of a modern rule of law and is not questioned in any way.
At the same time, it was stressed that the abuse of an institution established to protect workers undermines the credibility of the system itself, creates conditions of unequal treatment and burdens both the operation of public services and the employees who consistently perform their duties. Of particular concern are cases of long-term sick leave, which highlight the need for continuous evaluation and strengthening of control procedures, in order to ensure the proper implementation of the institutional framework, the equal treatment of all employees and the protection of the public interest.
The Ministers underlined that the Government's goal is not to challenge the right of employees to sick leave, but to ensure that this right is exercised in a fair, objective and reliable way, for the benefit of both employees and the proper functioning of public services.
During the meeting, there was a complete convergence of views between the four Ministries on the need to promote measures that will ensure, on the one hand, the substantial support of workers who are really in need and, on the other hand, the effective prevention and treatment of phenomena of abuse or distortions, where they are detected.
It was also emphasized that every body, service, authority, council, officer or professional involved in the process of granting, evaluating, controlling and monitoring sick leave must exercise its responsibilities with responsibility, objectivity, professionalism and full awareness of the consequences that its decisions have on the functioning of the state, employees and society in general.
The Government remains committed to ensuring the proper, fair and effective use of public resources, with respect to taxpayers and the public interest. In this context, it was decided to promote specific legislative, administrative and control interventions, with the aim of enhancing the transparency, accountability, credibility and effectiveness of the framework governing the granting of sick leave in the public sector.
