In their statements, the Minister of Labor and Social Security, Marinos Mousiouttas, and the General Secretary of SEK, Andreas Matsas, in statements following the meeting between SEK’s new leadership and the President of the Republic, Nicos Christodoulides, which took place on Thursday afternoon at the Presidential Palace.

In addition to pension reform, the meeting addressed the strategy regarding foreign workers, the hourly rate of the minimum wage, the bill on the adequacy of minimum wages and the extension of collective bargaining agreements, the expansion of the linkage between public contracts and the implementation of collective bargaining agreements, and issues of concern to the Cyprus Electricity Authority (AHK).

Present at the meeting were the Minister of Labor, the Deputy Minister to the President, Eirini Piki, the Director General of the Ministry of Finance, Andreas Zachariades, and the Deputy Government Spokesperson, Yiannis Antoniou.

Representing the new leadership of SEK were Mr. Matsas, the Deputy General Secretary, Panikos Argyrides, the General Organizer, Yiannis Tsouris, and the General Treasurer, Savvas Koulas.

Welcoming the SEK leadership, President Christodoulides said that “from the very beginning, and despite some differing approaches, we have regarded SEK as one of our closest partners and allies,” noting that the challenges and goals are shared.

The President also thanked SEK for its substantial contribution to the events of the Cypriot Presidency of the Council of the EU, noting that it was “a moment of pride for our country.” Regarding SEK, he said that its role extends beyond Cyprus’s borders and reaches across Europe.

The President made special mention of the success of the Cypriot Presidency regarding Regulation 883 on the coordination of social security systems, noting that this was an issue that had been pending for over a decade.

In remarks following the meeting, the Minister of Labor described the meeting as “constructive.” Referring to the issues discussed during the meeting, the Minister said that pension reform is at a “critical stage.”

“The dialogue with the unions and employers continues. Our intention is to present the draft bill to the members of the Labor Advisory Council within the next 15 days, so that they can see firsthand the government’s positions on the various aspects of the pension system, with the aim of discussing them and hearing suggestions,” he said, noting that “what we are saying is not set in stone; we are open to discussions and suggestions that we can incorporate into the bill.”

The Minister said that the critical issue is the second pillar. “Our commitment is that, when the bill is submitted to Parliament, there will also be an agreement on the second pillar, something sought primarily by the unions, but also by employers,” he said.

Mr. Mousiouttas said he is optimistic about a positive outcome on the pension reform “and, in fact, much sooner than originally anticipated.”

Referring to the other issues discussed during the meeting, Mr. Mousiouttas said that the strategy for employing foreign workers was discussed, noting that the union pointed out various distortions and ways to improve the strategy for the benefit of both workers and employers.

The issue of hourly minimum wage rates was also discussed. “We reiterated our position, which is also a decision of the Council of Ministers from last December, that the next discussion on the minimum wage decree will also include the issue of hourly pay,” he said, noting that the matter is already being discussed by a technical committee.

If no agreement is reached in the technical committee by the end of 2026 or early 2027, “then, as a government, we will move forward so that the 2027 decree also includes this element,” he said.

The Minister also addressed the issue of the bill on the adequacy of minimum wages and contracts. “It is a bill that has been delayed in being submitted,” he acknowledged, noting that there is an 8-month delay and that the bill is currently with the Legal Service for technical review. “The intention is to submit it to Parliament by the time it reconvenes next September so that debate can begin,” he said.

Mr. Mousiouttas also said that the issue of linking public contracts to collective bargaining agreements was discussed. As he noted, this is already the case in the construction industry. “There is already a government decision that this should be extended to other professions. The intention is for us, as a government, to move forward so that it is extended to security and cleaning services.”

In conclusion, he noted that it had been a very constructive dialogue. “After all, with SEK, we’re used to always having a constructive dialogue. Differences exist and always will. But in a spirit of consensus, we find solutions and move forward,” he said.

It is our shared intention to finalize the pension reform; there will be an agreement regarding the second pillar

For his part, SEK General Secretary Andreas Matsas said that the meeting with SEK’s new leadership evolved “into an effort to lay the necessary groundwork, so that issues related to improving labor market conditions can be addressed and we can create the conditions necessary to successfully conclude the ongoing dialogue on pensionsystem.”

After noting that the General Secretariat of SEK congratulated the Cypriot Presidency on its competence and the successful fulfillment of the obligations of the country holding the EU Council Presidency, he thanked the President for the fact that SEK had been assigned a special role in the process, by including in the official activities of the Cypriot Presidency initiatives “that we carried out together with our partners in the other EU member states.”

Regarding pensions, Mr. Matsas said that the Secretariat made it clear to the President and the Minister of Labor that, for SEK, “comprehensive reform of the pension system means linking it to the second pillar of pension benefits, which concerns provident funds, in an effort to adequately achieve the goal we have set of ensuring adequate pensions for all.”

According to Mr. Matsas, “there appears to be an intention to include the second pillar, and this is an issue we will discuss at length in the coming period, so that the bill and the proposal to be submitted to Parliament will include it.”

Regarding the strategy for the employment of workers from third countries, the Secretary General of SEK said that they highlighted the need for further management and better regulation of this issue, in order to better regulate the labor market and eliminate unfair competition, which is currently more pronounced between companies that apply collective bargaining agreements and those that refuse to do so.

This, he added, is linked to the next issue they raised with the President, which concerns the extension of collective bargaining agreements to cover the entire labor market. “It is important to immediately complete the pending process of legal review of the bill to be submitted to Parliament,” he said.

Furthermore, he noted as significant the government’s intention to adopt SEK’s position on linking public contracts to the implementation of collective bargaining agreements, as well as its acceptance of the position regarding hourly payment of the minimum wage.

Mr. Matsas said that issues concerning and affecting the EAC were also discussed, “presenting a clear position on the need to create conditions for the sustainable development of the authority, welcoming the fact that the labor unions representing EAC employees have shown a willingness to resolve the issues, provided that the Authority is also given access to renewable energy sources, so that they can support consumers, including through lower rates.

Source: CNA