Greece today: a KTEL bus strike is planned for 3 November, farmers are paid €83.6m, and secondary teachers stop work on 21 October

Are ΚΤΕΛ buses on strike on 3 November 2026?

A 24-hour strike is planned for Tuesday 3 November 2026 on all ΚΤΕΛ (KTEL) buses in Greece, urban and intercity, according to three reports published on 15 October 2026.¹²³ The strike has been called by ΟΣΜΕ (Ομοσπονδία Συνδικάτων Μεταφορών Ελλάδας, Omospondia Syndikaton Metaforon Elladas), the Federation of Transport Unions of Greece; we found no ΟΣΜΕ document, so the date rests on these reports.¹²³ The union says the sector's workers have had no pay rise since 2009, and that collective-agreement talks broke down after mediation and arbitration at ΟΜΕΔ (Οργανισμός Μεσολάβησης και Διαιτησίας, Organismos Mesolavisis kai Diaitisias), the mediation and arbitration body.¹²³ Efsyn reports that the strike also affects urban services in Athens and Thessaloniki that are run through ΚΤΕΛ, but it does not say which lines.¹ ΟΣΜΕ's appeal over the failed talks is heard on the same day, 3 November 2026; Ethnos says the workers have appealed to the Athens Court of Appeal.¹²

How much outstanding 2025 farm aid is being paid?

ΥΠΑΑΤ (Υπουργείο Αγροτικής Ανάπτυξης και Τροφίμων, Ypourgeio Agrotikis Anaptyxis kai Trofimon), the Ministry of Rural Development and Food, and ΑΑΔΕ (Ανεξάρτητη Αρχή Δημοσίων Εσόδων, Anexartiti Archi Dimosion Esodon), the tax authority, announced jointly on 15 October 2026 that €83,574,028.72 of outstanding 2025 direct farm aid had been sent for payment.⁴⁵⁶⁷ The payment goes to 110,109 beneficiaries, which correspond to 71,920 unique tax numbers (ΑΦΜ).⁴ €543,954 was offset against older debts, so €83,030,075 reaches bank accounts.⁴ Eco-schemes make up the largest part, €61,171,571.44, and the special cotton aid gets €1,412,713.32.⁴⁵⁶⁷ With this payment, absorption of the 2025 Pillar I direct-aid budget reaches 99.6%, out of total 2025 direct aid of about €1.696 billion; the 99.6% excludes the special cotton aid, which has its own budget.⁴

The transfer of farm payment entitlements is a separate scheme; our entitlements guide explains it.

What happens at schools on 21 October 2026?

ΟΛΜΕ (Ομοσπονδία Λειτουργών Μέσης Εκπαίδευσης, Omospondia Leitourgon Mesis Ekpaidefsis), the secondary-school teachers' federation, has called work stoppages from 11:00 to 14:00 on Wednesday 21 October 2026, not a 24-hour strike.⁸⁹¹⁰ ΟΛΜΕ calls on its local unions (ΕΛΜΕ) to add a stoppage from 08:00 to 11:00, and holds a rally in Athens at 12:00 at the Propylaia.⁸⁹¹⁰ The federation says at least 15,000 teaching posts remain unfilled, and its first demands are to fill all vacancies, cut the number of pupils per class and abolish the question bank (Τράπεζα Θεμάτων) and the minimum entry mark (Ελάχιστη Βάση Εισαγωγής).⁸ΕΛ⁹

The same day, ΔΟΕ (Διδασκαλική Ομοσπονδία Ελλάδος, Didaskaliki Omospondia Ellados), the primary-school teachers' federation, holds a 24-hour strike.¹¹¹⁰ Primary schools and kindergartens are not ordered to close: whether each one opens depends on how many of its teachers strike, so parents should check with their school, according to two reports.¹¹¹⁰ Neither report mentions guidance from the Ministry of Education, and we found none.¹¹¹⁰

When are 2026 asset declarations due?

The 2026 annual asset declarations (ΔΠΚ, Δήλωση Περιουσιακής Κατάστασης, Dilosi Periousiakis Katastasis) and declarations of financial interests (ΔΟΣ, Δήλωση Οικονομικών Συμφερόντων, Dilosi Oikonomikon Symferonton), known together as Πόθεν έσχες (Pothen esches, "where did you get it from"), must be filed by Tuesday 3 November 2026; filing opened on 3 August 2026.¹²ΕΛ¹³¹⁴ Declarations are filed online at pothen.gr, the official platform, and Fortune Greece says filers log in with their Taxisnet credentials.¹²¹⁴ The main law is Law 5026/2023, as amended by Law 5130/2024.¹²¹⁴ Data from banks and public registers, such as deposits, loans, property and vehicles, are pre-filled, but the filer remains responsible for checking them.¹³¹⁴

Payments and pensions

The Ministry of Labour and Social Security (Υπουργείο Εργασίας και Κοινωνικής Ασφάλισης, Ypourgeio Ergasias kai Koinonikis Asfalisis) says e-ΕΦΚΑ, the social-insurance fund, and ΔΥΠΑ, the public employment service, are paying €63,782,008.50 to 61,636 beneficiaries from 12 to 16 October 2026; Friday 16 October is the last day of that window, and it is not a pension instalment.¹⁵ November 2026 pensions are paid on 26 and 29 October 2026; our pension-dates guide has the details.¹⁶¹⁷