The General Assembly of employees of the Ministry of Education’s Support Programs was adopted by the General Assembly of employees of the Support Programs of the Ministry of Education, Sports, and Youth (YPAN), which took place on Monday, August 24, according to the PASEY–PEO and OEKDY–SEK unions.
In a joint statement, the PASEY–PEO and OEKDY–SEK state that employees of the Ministry of Education’s Support Programs are protesting the ongoing delay in implementing the legislation passed on April 21, 2026 and the serious problems they continue to face, and they call on the President of the Republic of Cyprus to intervene immediately and decisively to find solutions
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According to the unions, “the first and most urgent issue is the fact that permanent employees who have completed 30 months of service have been without any income from June until today.”
They note that in other sectors, permanent employees are normally registered as unemployed during periods of suspension or interruption of work, such as school boards, the tourism industry and hotels, municipalities, private schools, and district administrations.
They add that the Ministry of Labor and Social Security does not apply the same practice to employees of Support Programs, claiming that there is no interruption in employment.
“If it is indeed true that there is no interruption in employment, the Ministry of Labor and Social Security should pay wages for the period in question,” they add.
A second issue, according to the unions PASEU–PEO and OEKDY–SEK, concerns a small group of fewer than 100 employees who have not yet completed 30 months of service in the same program and who have many years of service in programs that the Ministry of Labor and Social Security (YPAN) terminated by political decision; in addition to the fact that their prior service is not recognized, they risk not even have a fixed-term contract.
“Although there is a need and the announcement of additional fixed-term positions has been agreed upon, the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs cites a lack of funding and defers the matter to the 2027 budget,” they add.
They also note that a third issue is “the unjustified delay in organizing the programs and the absence of meaningful dialogue with the unions.”
Finally, the PASEY–PEO and OEKDY–SEK unions are calling for the immediate payment of unemployment benefits to eligible workers or a policy decision to provide 12 months of wages, immediate implementation of the legislation governing employment in Support Programs, the immediate announcement of job openings for workers who have not completed 30 months of service, and a substantive and timely dialogue with the unions.
Source: KYPE
