Refugee housing support an issue for healthcare workers paid extra during pandemic

Healthcare professionals who worked overtime during Covid and got paid extra are being rejected for refugee housing support as their income levels are now higher than the government’s financial criteria.

During a House interior committee on Friday, MPs called on the state to show “due sensitivity” over the matter and make an exception for these individuals “who served during Covid units during the peak of the pandemic.”

Diko MP Christos Senekis tabled the issue and said the healthcare professionals made great sacrifices “in exhausting working hours and the thank you from the state is that whoever applied for housing support for refugees were rejected because their overtime increased their income levels above the criteria.”

The deputy called on the interior ministry to bear in mind their service to the state when examining their applications.

The interior minister agreed to the request for 2020 – 2021 but specified that if they had increased income due to overtime in 2019 and 2022 then they would be excluded.