Unions have agreed to give the island’s new government that will take over on March 1 some grace period before strong measures as regards the CoLA-linked pay increases are considered.
Last week, thousands of workers across all sectors in Cyprus staged a three-hour island-wide strike to demand Cost of Living Allowance-linked pay increases.
Presidential elections are taking place on Sunday with a second round set for the week after – something inevitable in Cyprus elections.
The leaderships of trade unions SEK, PEO, DEOK and PASYDY reviewed the CoLA issue on Monday and exchanged views on the next steps to be taken.
When they meet again is still pending, insiders told Philenews, but their goal is to keep the issue hot.
Even though they are fully aware that this will be discussed again with the new government after a short grace period.
The unions have said some 70, 000 public sector and 40, 000 private sector workers participated in last Thursday’s labour action.
This shut down the government, public transport, hospitals, airports and ports, factories and offices between 12 noon and 3 p.m.
Airport authorities said that 22 flights were affected and had to be rescheduled.
Thousands of demonstrators had gathered outside the Ministry of Finance and then marched on to the Labour Ministry in Nicosia demanding the full restoration of the CoLA system (CoLA).
This aimed at compensating workers for the loss of purchasing power as a result of inflation.
The strike, the first major nationwide industrial action involving all trade unions of the island in more than a decade, was called after talks between workers and employers on the full restoration of the CoLA broke down.
The CoLA was suspended in 2013 under pressure by the Eurogroup as part of austerity measures in exchange for a ten-billion-euro bailout of the near bankrupt Cypriot economy.
It was partly restored in 2017 under an agreement providing that until the end of 2022 workers would receive an increase in their salaries equal to 50 per cent of the annual inflation rate.
