‘Step in right direction’ for third country nationals

An “initially positive response” from stakeholders on the issue of using workers from third countries to fill gaps in the labour market is a “step in the right direction”, Labour Minister Yiannis Panayiotou said on Tuesday.

Speaking after a meeting with the employers and trade unions, he said a final meeting is due to take place within the next few days, with the hope that a conclusion and an agreement can be reached to set out new rules regarding the hiring of third country nationals in Cyprus.

The agreement, he said, foresees three new stipulations.

Firstly, there will be an “advisory tripartite technical committee” comprised of representatives of the government, trade unions and employers’ organisations, which “will have an advisory role to the ministry”.

The ministry will continue to be “responsible for making all relevant decisions, upgrading the framework regarding the living conditions of third country nationals who come to work in Cyprus, so that these conditions can be more appropriately defined so that the corresponding checks can take place,” Panayiotou said.

In addition, the agreement will stipulate a time limit for the completion of consultations and the evaluation of existing procedures, so that any new laws can be implemented before Autumn comes and in view of next year’s tourism season.

If this is not possible, he said, his ministry will submit a new proposal to cabinet.

On immediate next steps, he said “the scheduled meeting of the collective bodies belonging to the employers’ and industrialists’ federation (Oeb) is scheduled for next Thursday, so our final meeting will be scheduled accordingly.”

“I am optimistic in relation to the final outcome, which, according to today’s indications … are positive,” he added.

“The development of the economy and social cohesion require the constructive cooperation of all sides, to ensure the progress and wellbeing of the people of this country,” he said.

He went on to say that “especially at the present time, the fluidity of the international environment and major external changes make unity and cooperation at home imperative to ensure smoothness and stability at all levels.

“For several weeks now, together with the leaderships of trade unions and employers’ organisations, we spent a lot of time and delved into all the aspects of these issues,” he said.

Those conversations resulted in “the formation of a framework which was put before the stakeholders,” which, he said, received a positive response in principle.

“The majority of the organisations which represent the various stakeholders have already convened their bodies and ratified their relevant positions. Some organisations’ internal processes are pending, and I await their final positions,” he said.