Court stenographers say they are understaffed and overworked

Stenographers at the Limassol district court staged an impromptu work stoppage on Wednesday morning to protest understaffing.

They also complained over their unequal treatment compared with professionals working in other district courts, they said in a written statement.

According to the protestors, the 2021 budget provides for 167 judges and 113 stenographers while new judges were said to be recruited but no more stenographers have been hired to be able to service all the judges.

Furthermore, stenographers from Limassol are being transferred to cover the needs of the district courts in Paphos and Larnaca since 2007.

Transfer orders have been recently sent to three stenographers from Limassol to cover the needs at the Nicosia district court, the statement added.

This “causes enormous inconvenience and expense to the stenographers of Limassol,” they said.

The excuse that there are more stenographers at the Limassol court “is not valid” since there are currently 30 judges, with two more expected in September, while there are just 26 stenographers whose number will be reduced after the transfer orders.

Meanwhile, several stenographers at the Nicosia district court are assigned to duties outside their job description, the protesters said, such as to type orders and perform secretarial duties. Those “could be placed in the various posts that the Limassol stenographers are called upon to fill by transfer,” they said.

The group called on the competent authority to respond to their request for a meeting prior to the three stenographers’ transfer on September 1.