A bill on the overhaul of the national social security agency (EFKA) into a more efficient and updated agency has been posted on Friday for a 15-day public consultation, the The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs said.

The bill, which includes the hiring of permanent and temporary staff, including executives from the public and private sectors, and productivity bonuses, was announced in advance on November 30 through Minister Kostis Hatzidakiswho had said that it would be tabled in Parliament for a vote during the month of January.

In Novemberthe minister said that EFKA is one of the largest public organizations in Greece reaching 6.5 million citizens, including 2.5 million are retired and 4 million are employed or self-employed.

“It is, at the same time, the most problematic agency of the Greek public administration, and leads – by far – in citizens’ complaints to the Greek Ombudsman (with a share of 48% among public sector complaints to the broad sense), while delays in managing pensions is the main complaint,” said the minister at the time. Existing delays and bureaucratic problems were compounded by the rushed integration of old health and pension funds in 2016, lack of specialized staff and outdated computers, he noted.

At Fridaywhen displaying the invoice, Hatzidakis says the new bill “follow European standards, be more efficient, more productive, and above all more user-friendly, look nothing like” the old EFKA. One of the main provisions of the bill, he pointed out, will help attract high-level personnel from the private and public sectors and introduce more efficient procedures related to everything from bureaucratic processing to the provision of supplies. Office. “The insured is not a servant of the administration – the administration must be at the service of the insured.” he said.