CoLA dispute will only be solved through compromise says minister

It is important for all of us to recognise that through compromise not everyone can achieve everything they think is right, Labour Minister Yiannis Panayiotou said on Tuesday in the midst of consultations on the cost of living allowance (CoLA).

Speaking at the 13^th Nicosia Economic Congress, Panayiotou highlighted his ministry’s mediating efforts on the matter, at the same time stressing the need to ensure stability and labour peace, which is “necessary for the development of the economy”.

“Employers cannot build the workers of their dreams, who will agree with them on everything, as much as workers cannot build the employers of their dreams, and that’s why we have to come to compromises,” Panayiotou said.

However, he said he was optimistic that through the “maturity and seriousness” of social partners a positive result would soon be reached, as many have already made decisions putting them on track.

This echoed his statements to CyBC the previous day, where he said he was confident an agreement would be reached “within the next few days”.

“I think this may soon lead to what we need,” he said. “We need an agreement; we need stability, we need to ensure labour peace, we need to enable the development of the economy, especially focusing on a very good tourist season, which is on its way, we need to help strengthen social cohesion, because the cost of living is high…

“I estimate that all these things taken together will lead us to a positive result,” he concluded.

Aside from CoLA, the minister analysed the government’s labour market policy, saying more women in the labour market cannot just be a slogan.

Panayiotou said that even though the ministry and his predecessors have made significant achievements in the past years, the field of human resource development did not receive the emphasis it deserved for decades.

“This is my priority, and out of everything I have to do, this would bring the most development,” he said, adding that there needs to be better links between the education system and the labour market.