In a joint statement, the All Cyprus Union of Government Doctors, the All Cyprus Nurses Union, the Independent Union of Telecommunications Workers, the All Cyprus Independent Union of ATHIK Workers, the Union of Shift Clerks EAC and the All Cyprus Union of Air Traffic Controllers, request the Government, the Ministry of Finance, parliament and political parties to act to implement their pending demands.
As they report ten years ago due to the crisis, workers in the Civil Service and the wider public sector shouldered a large part of the pay cuts noting that for shift workers, in adverse conditions, the real reduction in earnings was even greater.
“Compensation for night work proven to be harmful to health was significantly reduced. So is the compensation for working on holidays and public holidays, which was a minimal compensation for those who work while their families celebrate without them,” it added.
As the economy improved, the unions' announcement continues, gradually the benefits and earnings of public and government employees working office hours were almost fully restored but not for shift workers, who sacrifice a large part of their personal, family and social of life, day and night, Sundays, Christmas, Easter and so many other holidays to treat the sick, to ensure the supply of electricity, telecommunications and air traffic, to support the orderly functioning of the state and society.
“For these workers, allowances for shift work, night work, work on Sundays and public holidays, work outside fixed hours, weekday and Sunday/holiday overtime compensation and the like remain significantly reduced for a decade. If we take into account the increased inflation, which affects the purchasing power of all workers, for shift workers the economic burden is double”, it is added.
The unions state finally, that “we have the law on our side and we will fight with every legal means to defend it”.
