Kathimerini reports that between 50 and 70 per cent of those working on Athens 2004 construction sites are illegal immigrants from countries in Eastern Europe and the third world - including Ghana.

The 11,000 workers are illegally working overtime without safety precautions or social insurance.

Georgios Theodorou, the Secretary-General of the builder workers trade union said the unqualified and cheap workers from foreign countries are exploited by their employers because they do not have a Green Card. They cannot protest that they are underpaid and not insured.

Kathimerini reports that the workers receive a daily wage of between 15 and 70 euros. Domestic workers and welders receive the top salary.

Specialized craftsmen from Poland and Bulgaria receive 40 to 50 euros a day. Assistants from Pakistan, Iraq, Bangladesh and Ghana get only 15 to 30 euros daily.