In a statement, the party argues that fatal workplace accidents are not isolated events but the outcome of policies that have weakened labour legislation and dismantled inspection and protection mechanisms. This, it says, has encouraged “unchecked employer arbitrariness”, as companies cut labour costs and safety measures.
MeRA25 Thessaly notes that the Violanta tragedy is part of a broader pattern, pointing to 201 recorded workplace deaths in 2025.
The statement also claims the blast occurred at dawn for reasons that remain unclear, severely damaging an older factory building. It adds that the night shift was operating with reduced staffing because the company was holding its New Year’s pie-cutting event and some employees did not attend work, arguing that “only by chance” the death toll was not higher.
MeRA25 further recalls that, during the summer, Labour Inspectorate health and safety officials, together with a representative of the Trikala Labour Centre, visited the Violanta factory and other workplaces in the area and raised observations related to protection, hygiene and workplace safety measures.
The party concludes by demanding full clarification of the causes of the explosion and fire, immediate attribution of responsibility, and the strengthening of inspection mechanisms and workplace protections. “No person should die at work,” it says, expressing condolences to the families of the women who lost their lives.
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