Industrial action and disputes in Cyprus

The right to strike is guaranteed by the Constitution of the Republic of Cyprus. Specifically, Article 27, paragraph 1, provides that:

the right to strike is recognised and its exercise may be regulated by law for the purposes only of safeguarding the security of the Republic or the constitutional order or the public order or the public safety or the maintenance of supplies and services essential to the life of the inhabitants or the protection of the rights and liberties guaranteed by this Constitution to any person

According to paragraph 2 of Article 27, people belonging to the armed forces, police and gendarmerie do not have the right to strike. A law could be passed to extend this prohibition to public employees. However, no such law has ever been enacted.

The issue of regulating strikes and of the dispute settlement procedure in essential services had remained pending for a number of years, with three attempts to regulate the matter through legislation resulting in a deadlock. In March 2004, a tripartite agreement on the procedure for resolving labour disputes in essential services was finally signed. The accord introduces an arbitration procedure in such disputes but does not rule out industrial action. In the framework of the new agreement, Defence Regulations 79A and 79B, which were issued on the basis of an existing essential services order, should be abolished. Both the International Labour Office and the Council of Europe have remarked that Regulations 79A and 79B are not consistent with treaties of these bodies ratified by the Republic of Cyprus.

There is no specific reference in the Constitution, or any other law, to a right to introduce a lockout. In a study on the matter by the attorney general, it was concluded that, in accordance with existing legislation in Cyprus, lockout, although not recognised by the Constitution, ‘is a right the employer has, provided it is exercised for safeguarding or promoting the lawful interests of the employer during a trade dispute and without committing any penal or illegal act or activity’. Additionally, the IRC, under part II, section B, paragraph 1(d) (violations of collective agreements), provides that ‘the aggrieved party may resort to any lawful action, including a strike or lockout, in defence of its interests’.

Developments in industrial action, 2012–2022

Source: DLR (undated)

Collective dispute resolution mechanisms and individual dispute resolution mechanisms

In the current system of collective bargaining, government coordination is rather weak. The state intervenes, as laid down in the IRC, through the Mediation Service of the Ministry of Labour when reaching an agreement in direct bipartite bargaining between employer organisations and trade unions is difficult.

Specifically, the IRC consists of two parts. In the first part, under the title ‘Substantive provisions’, the two main participating parties recognise and ensure certain fundamental rights to free collective bargaining, while, in the second part, titled ‘Procedural provisions’, the IRC provides for separate procedures to be followed for the settlement of disputes over interests and for the settlement of grievances/disputes over rights. As reported by the Ministry of Labour, given the complex nature of the agreements, many labour disputes arise from the interpretation of the agreements (disputes over grievances), leading to a constant stream of labour disputes.

Over the past decade, the MLSI has played an important role in maintaining industrial peace by providing mediation services for the renewal of collective agreements. In this context, it is worth mentioning that, during the same period, increasingly fewer sectoral collective agreements were concluded at the direct bargaining stage, causing serious delays in the renewal of agreements. Specifically, according to official data provided by the DLR of the MLSI for 2017, 150 labour disputes were referred to mediation, involving a total of 14,144 employees, compared with 177 labour disputes in 2016, involving a total of 61,693 employees.

Use of dispute resolution mechanisms, 2012–2022

Source: DLR (undated)