Isotita vows to join low-wage civil servant strike

Trade union Isotita on Monday added its voice to the call for strike action to support the demands of low-salary civil servants.

The strike action, planned for November 1, had been announced on Saturday by the civil servants in consultation with civil servants union Pasydy.

Isotita said the request by low-paid civil servants was fair and had the full support of the union.

“A written commitment from the Christodoulides government had [previously] been given to restore the salary of low-paid civil servants,” the union said, and added the expectation was for it to be implemented immediately.

“If there is no proper resolution […] by the 31st of this month, we will have to show with our massive participation in the strike that we are determined to fight until the fair demand of our low-paid colleagues is satisfied,” the union added.

The low-paid civil servants said on Saturday that the call to action was taken upon realising that no meeting had been scheduled between Pasydy and the president’s office, so they were forced to go ahead with a strike.

They expressed their fury that a proposal for wage adjustments, which they said had already been agreed to by the president, had now been met with a counterproposal.

The civil servants said the counterproposal did not satisfy the needs of low earners since their salaries would not be immediately adjusted.

Finance Minister Makis Keravnos had said on Wednesday he would “look at ways of increasing the salaries” of low-wage civil servants.

Strikers announced they would be starting at the ‘Kalispera’ lights and from there making their way to the Presidential Place, followed by the ministry of finance building.