Cyprus
Background information on industrial relations in Cyprus
- 01 Aug 2011
Cyprus: Cyprus: The representativeness of trade unions and employer associations in the banking sectorThe banking sector in Cyprus shows a slow but steady increase in terms of employment, which reached 3.2% of overall employment in 2008. In terms of its value added, the contribution of the sector to the Cypriot economy has also increased, reaching 6.9% in 2008. As far as collective bargaining and representation is concerned, banking is among the best organised sectors of economic activity, with high unionisation rates and high collective bargaining coverage. In this context, most the bargaining takes place at sectoral level, covering over 9,000 employees, while the rest of the employees are covered by enterprise-level agreements.
- 29 Jul 2011
Cyprus: Cyprus: EIRO CAR on ‘Helping young workers during the crisis: contributions by social partners and public authorities’A particularly worrying aspect of the economic recession has been the level of youth unemployment rate (under 25) that rose from 17.2% in October 2009 to 20.8% in September 2010. Against this background, although the government promoted a number of prevention and action measures with beneficial effects on youth employment as well, the involvement of the social partners is almost exclusively limited to the enunciation of positions with regard to measures to be taken by the government.
- 27 Jul 2011
Cyprus: Ministry announces further minimum wages increasesIn April 2011, the Minister of Labour in Cyprus announced new increases in the national minimum wage, which covers workers in nine specific occupations, sparking strong opposition from employers. The 2011 increase was made as part of the work of the Labour Advisory Board and has reignited a debate over readjusting minimum wages. A small proportion of workers have demanded even bigger increases, along with greater coverage for more occupations, and other benefits as well.
- 28 Jun 2011
Cyprus: Strike over subcontracting in construction sectorFollowing an agreement reached between unions and construction sector companies on 14 April 2011, an open-ended strike at Lemessos Marina was resolved after four days. The strike had been prompted by the employers’ decision to assign part of the construction work at the marina to sub-contractors. The unions said this was a violation of the sectoral collective agreement, while employers said the strike itself violated both the agreement and the Industrial Relations Code.
- 28 Jun 2011
Cyprus: KEO redundancy talks in deadlockThe issue of redundancies at the Cyprus Wine Company has been at the mediation stage since April 2011, following deadlock in talks between KEO and the trade unions. Although the findings of the mediation committee are not expected before the end of May 2011, the most likely scenario is that a deadlock will be officially announced and that unions may then take strike action. The two sides hold diametrically opposed views on the proposed number of dismissals and redundancy terms.
- 15 Jun 2011
Cyprus: Cyprus: EIRO CAR on “SMEs in the crisis: Employment, Industrial Relations and Local Partnership”Figures for 2008 show a total of 75.581enterprises, of which over 94% were very small (1-9 employees). Although there is no information available on how SMEs have been affected by the financial crisis, many small firms are located in sectors that are most affected by the crisis, mainly in construction, hotels and retail. As far as employment relations are concerned, it seems that SMEs rely on informal arrangements and have no structures for social dialogue.
- 14 Jun 2011
Cyprus: Cyprus: Representativeness of the European social partners organisations – Public administration sectorIn terms of employment, the contribution of the public administration sector to the Cypriot economy is not insignificant, amounting to 4.7% in 2007. In terms of representation and collective bargaining, the public administration follows the norm of the public sector in general, with high unionisation rates and high collective bargaining coverage.
- 11 May 2011
Cyprus: Cyprus: The representativeness of trade unions and employer associations in the commerce sectorThe commerce sector in Cyprus is crucial to the country’s economy, accounting for 13.4% of the total value added and 17.8% of total employment in 2008. However, in terms of employee representation and collective bargaining, the sector is characterised by extremely low union rates and collective bargaining coverage. Making collective bargaining the principal mechanism for creating and determining the terms and conditions of employment in the commerce sector is a top priority for the trade unions.
- 05 May 2011
Cyprus: New agreement in sea and coastal water transportOn 7 January 2011, trade unions and employer organisations representing workers in the sea and coastal water transport sector in Cyprus agreed to renew their collective agreement. Effective for three years, the new agreement follows a general trend of moderate pay increases in the country, providing for a total rise of about 1.5% in basic wages (but only from the second year of the agreement). The new agreement makes no substantial changes in areas other than pay.
- 02 May 2011
Cyprus: Rescue plan for Cyprus AirwaysA last-ditch rescue plan for Cyprus Airways was submitted by company management in February 2011. The measures outlined included a substantial reduction in labour costs, with an estimated 156 redundancies. A special agreement on the cuts was concluded by the company and employees, following a mediation proposal prepared by the Ministry of Labour and Social Insurance. The plan also includes re-working the state air carrier’s flight schedule and reducing operating costs.
- 21 Apr 2011
Cyprus: Representativeness of the European social partner organisations: Education sector – CyprusThe aim of this representativeness study is to identify the respective national and supranational actors (i.e. trade unions and employer organisations) in the field of industrial relations in the education sector in Cyprus. In order to determine their relative importance in the sector’s industrial relations, this study will, in particular, focus on their representational quality as well as on their role in collective bargaining.
- 25 Feb 2011
Cyprus: Strike action suspended nationwideIn December 2010, most of the trade unions in Cyprus called off planned strike action after reaching a framework agreement with the Minister of Finance over proposed fiscal recovery measures. The most representative trade unions in the public and private sector, with the exception of the education unions, called off strikes that had been announced for mid-December. However, government measures were due to be re-examined in late January 2011.
- 17 Feb 2011
Cyprus: Bargaining deadlocked in metalworking industryIn November 2010, the Cypriot Ministry of Labour and Social Insurance declared a deadlock in a labour dispute that had arisen over the renewal of a collective labour agreement in the metalworking industry. The deadlock emerged after the employer side rejected the ministry’s mediation proposal. Representatives of employers were locked in a serious dispute with the trade unions on the pay-related part of the agreement which could, ultimately, lead to strike action.
- 14 Feb 2011
Cyprus: Cyprus: Industrial Relations in the Health Care SectorDespite its rather rapid development during the last five years, the private part of the health care sector is characterised by low union density and low coverage. Apart from representation problems, the private sector is highly segregated, dominated almost exclusively by female employment, while due to serious shortages of domestic labour, mainly among first-level nurses, there is high cross-border mobility. As regards the further development of the private segment of the sector, completion of the dialogue on the creation of a General Health System is very important, while the issue of staffing remains a main priority for both the private and the public parts of the sector.
- 19 Jan 2011
Cyprus: Cyprus: EIRO CAR on “The effect of the information and consultation directive on Industrial Relations in the EU Member States five years after its transposition”Although the harmonisation of national law with Directive 2002/14/EC was completed in July 2005, five years after law 78(I)/2005 came into effect, there are still indications that in practice its implementation is extremely restricted, almost entirely due to the social partners’ failure to take forward its practical implementation.
- 11 Jan 2011
Cyprus: Cyprus: Eiro annual review – 2009This annual review, compiled in February 2010, looks at industrial relations developments in Cyprus during the course of 2009.
- 10 Jan 2011
Cyprus: Government’s final proposal on modernising industrial relationsIn November 2010, after more than four years of social dialogue, the government has presented the social partners with its final proposal on the modernisation of the industrial relations system. Trade union membership has dropped in recent years and illegal work has increased. The government draft bill therefore seeks to strengthen rights to bargain collectively and to give trade union representatives access to workplaces, while still respecting employers’ rights.
- 10 Jan 2011
Cyprus: New agreement in the hotel industryAfter almost two years of hard bargaining, trade unions and employer organisations representing Cyprus hotel workers agreed in September 2010 to accept the revised proposal by mediators to renew their collective agreement. Effective for four years, the new agreement provides for a total pay increase of about 1.5% in basic wages (but only from its second year). The intransigence of both sides means certain non-pay issues have been deferred for further consultation.