Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis met on Tuesday (24/03) in Thessaloniki with 63-year-old Theophilos, who managed to secure social housing with particularly low rent and reintegrate into the job market through support programs for vulnerable social groups. The housing was secured through the “Social Housing for the Most Vulnerable Groups in Thessaloniki” program, which involved the renovation of 40 apartments belonging to broader public sector entities that had remained unused for years. These properties were made available to cover the housing needs of citizens facing the risk of homelessness, as well as victims of gender-based violence.
The Municipality of Thessaloniki combined this program with the “Housing and Employment for the homeless” initiative, through which the state offers multi-month employment and rent subsidies, combined with psychological and social support. These programs were utilized by Theophilos, among others, and now he has full-time employment in a municipal service while living in a renovated, energy-upgraded, and fully equipped apartment from the program, with affordable rent.
Mitsotakis: We must be close to people and help them get back on their feet
“The most important thing is that we give people who may have gone through difficulties for various reasons the opportunity to get back on their feet. Because we have been very concerned in the past about how we handle such cases,” the Prime Minister emphasized during the discussion, which was attended by Minister of Social Cohesion and Family Domna Michailidou.
“I have to say, the program is wonderful because you can take people off the streets who have the will and can be reintegrated,” noted Theophilos, who recounted to Kyriakos Mitsotakis the great difficulties he faced in the past finding employment, experiencing conditions of social exclusion.
“You left the streets, the shelters, you have a stable job and you can see the future with greater optimism. Everyone deserves a second chance in this life. And our job is for those who want to seize it – because there are some who may not want to – but those who certainly want to seize this second chance, we must be close to them and help them get back on their feet,” the Prime Minister told him, emphasizing the importance of utilizing public properties that were inactive before being used as social housing.
“I’m pleased because this is a program that clearly has demand but we can simultaneously utilize – and I think this is extremely positive – properties that under other circumstances would not be usable, so we can make them available to people who really need them. Because there’s constantly this discussion about closed public properties. Let’s see what we do. This is the first example. I should say that the Municipality of Thessaloniki has embraced the program. The challenge now is to constantly find more properties that can be included. And of course, I think as long as there’s a process, we can collect properties from other entities too, and the Municipality of Athens is also taking its steps. And I want to encourage Athens to move even faster so it can undertake similar initiatives. And ultimately, you are the beneficiary who has a nice warm home,” Kyriakos Mitsotakis stated.
Pension reform allowing retirees to work without pension cuts among most important reforms
During the discussion, Theophilos raised the issue of “age discrimination” that people who want to work but cannot find employment experience in the job market. “At the shelter I’ve met other people who, each for different reasons, found themselves on the margins, and what we’re trying to do, both today and during my time on the streets, was to be able to reintegrate. Because whatever our age, there are people in their 50s, there are people in their 60s like me, we can’t easily find work because there’s age discrimination,” he said.
“That’s why the municipalities’ ’55-67′ program had such great importance, very high absorption, very high interest. But we also saw there that these people have a real appetite for work,” the Prime Minister noted, highlighting the government’s initiative to give retirees the ability to work without having their pensions cut, simply paying an insurance contribution that ultimately increases their pension. “One of the most important reforms we’ve made is to give retirees the ability to work without us withholding their pension.
That is, you are a person who is still productive. And when you eventually retire, you may want to continue working and receive your pension without us cutting it, have the supplementary income, be taxed for it, but not be punished just because you choose to work after retirement age,” Kyriakos Mitsotakis emphasized.
