The Greek cabinet has approved a measure to begin reducing the number of state workers, a contentious part of an austerity plan aimed at freeing up EU and IMF loans.<br /><br />The plan, endorsed on Sunday, creates a "labour reserve" allowing state workers to be placed on partial pay and be dismissed a year after.<br /><br />The government has said it will put 30,000 workers in the reserve by the end of this year.<br /><br />The finance ministry said in a statement after Sunday's cabinet meeting that the 2012 draft budget, under which redundancies will be catered for, had been approved.<br /><br />"The budget draft will be submitted tomorrow to parliament," the statement said.<br /><br />Al Jazeera's Paul Brennan reports.
