Middle incomes take big blow

Greece's middle-income earners are today at least 30 percent poorer than they were in the period before the economic crisis, having been overtaxed and having grown in number, as they now include previously wealthier categories too, according to Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT) data processed by the Hellenic Federation of Enterprises (SEV).

The latest figures, which concern the year 2018, show that the middle class in income terms accounts for 54 percent of households and pays 51 percent of taxes and social security contributions, while in 2007 it accounted for 48 percent of households that paid just 37.5 percent of taxes and contributions.

The burden on the middle class soared under the government led by Alexis Tsipras, especially after 2016: The average tax rate for the middle class rose from 19.3 percent in 2009 to 27.9 percent in 2018, "mainly because of the...