30 People in Greece Have a New Job, Thanks to a Twitter Hashtag · Global Voices
Alexia Kalaitzi

Graffiti in Greek reads, “I don't hope for anything, I am not afraid of anything, I am unemployed,” a rephrasing of a famous quote by a Greek author. Photo by SpirosK photography via Flickr. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
At a time when unemployment has reached a staggering 27 percent in Greece, a hashtag on Twitter has helped about 30 people in the country find work.
#aggeliesergasias (jobadverts) was created by user @dimitrischrid in the beginning of October to help social media users share information about job opportunities in Greece and abroad. On December 11, the hashtag was a trending topic on Greek Twitter for 11 hours, thanks to its use by Twitter users and well-trafficked employment portals.
Did you know that #aggeliesergasias was Trending Topic on Wednesday 11 for 11 hours in Greece? http://t.co/HE05KfTGEB #trndnl
— Τάσεις στην Ελλάδα (@trendinaliaGR) december 12, 2013
It has become a symbol of solidarity on the Internet against the increasing problem of unemployment in the country. Several Greek media outlets have referred to the initiative, characterizing it as simple, smart and effective. The blog Keep Talking Greece, dedicated to sharing the stories of “real” Greeks affected by the crisis, wrote:
Within a few days, the hell broke out: Twitter users started to post job offers they knew or heard about, while job seekers started to post their request. ReTweets and Favorites added quickly to the success of this modern, social media way to get to see a job offered in Athens or Xanthi, in London or Preveza, in Cete or in Geneva.
Creator @dimitrischrid explained to news website Protagon the effect that the hashtag has had so far:
Μέχρι τώρα, που είναι ακόμα πολύ νωρίς και πολλοί δεν γνωρίζουν προς το παρόν αυτόν τον τρόπο εύρεσης εργασίας, μου έχουν στείλει περίπου 30 άτομα μήνυμα που μου είπαν ότι προσλήφθηκαν και θέλησαν να με ευχαριστήσουν για το καλό που τους έκανα. […] Ο καθένας από εμάς μπορεί να φτιάξει ένα hashtag, δεν υπάρχει τρόπος να πληρωθείς ποτέ την επιτυχία του, αλλά η ηθική ανταμοιβή που παίρνω καθημερινά, αξίζει όλα τα λεφτά του κόσμου».
Up until now, and it is very early yet and many don't know about this way of searching for a job, around 30 people have sent me messages telling me that they have been hired and wanted to thank me for this. […] Each one of us can make a hashtag, there is no way to get paid for its success, but the ethical reward I receive every day is worth all the money in the world.
The effort has also expanded to Facebook.