Ergani proving a headache, employers washing hands of responsibility

Ergani, the government online system to stamp out illegal work, is proving to be a headache for government and potential employees alike, because the employers obliged to input the information are backing out whenever a glitch appears, leaving many eligible to work out of a job.

Almost unbelievably, that glitch appears when legally registered third country nationals change their status to another which is also legally recognised.

On accessing the website, Ergani tells employers they are obliged to notify the system of employees coming and going, as well as their terms of employment.

Information on employees must be entered by the employers, who register themselves and their employees with Social Insurance Services electronically.

In the case of employees from third countries, Ergani processes the information entered and informs the employer if the person is entitled to get the job, depending on their status – legal immigrant or not.

However simple this may seem, some third country applicants are getting chewed up by the system and a ‘no’ spat out at them, even though all their papers are in order.

Although employers can submit the information via email to bypass the system, most of the time they do not bother and simply call in the next applicant from the long queue.

Civil servants at Ergani have received dozens of complaints and call on applicants to be patient until the system, still in its infancy, is smoothed out.

Ergani employees also urge employers to submit the applications manually.

On October 24, 2024, lawmakers passed legislation tightening the rules on illegal and undeclared work, which among others provide for stiffer fines on employers.

Under the new rules, the minister of labour may issue a decree obliging employers to declare the essential terms of employment of their workers.

In addition, the fines on employers for undeclared workers rises from €500 to €1,000. The amount applies per undeclared worker.

In the event a labour inspector determines a repeat (second) violation within two years of the first, the fine goes up to €2,000. A third violation carries a €3,000 fine.

The Cyprus Mail contacted the Social Insurance Services and learned that if a person from a third country changes status, the system may wrongly recognise them as illegal.

One case reached the Cyprus Mail, with the frustrated couple on the cusp of suing the government.
Many employers, they said, take the information provided by Ergani to be true and do not question it.
The couple – woman Cypriot, man from a third country – was told that when the latter changed his legal status to reflect that he was the father of their newborn child, a representative promised that this issue would be fixed. Several months on, nothing has been done.

In the past few days, the couple was asked by the ombudswoman’s office to send the man’s identification so that they could intervene.

In the meantime, the couple has escalated the matter to the European Commission and has sought advice from a lawyer, who said they had a case and people facing similar difficulties should come forward.

Despite the couple contacting numerous departments and services, seeking an immediate solution, they said nothing has been done and so a mere technical issue is denying family members of EU nationals employment opportunities, which is in violation of the EU free movement law.