Employees at the Paphos district organisation (EOA) staged a two-hour work stoppage on Thursday, demanding the signing and implementation of their collective agreement.

The protest began at 10 am, with trade unions SEK and PEO present. Workers held placards calling for the agreement’s signing and the regulation of labour relations.

SEK representative Andreas Elia said the unions had supported local administration reforms and would continue to do so. However, he noted that employees’ terms of employment had yet to be clarified.

He added that the reforms brought all local administration services under one umbrella and that Paphos’ EOA required proper staffing, planning and structure.

Elia said that employees had been patient for over a year and expressed hope that the employer would reconsider its stance and sign the agreement.

On behalf of Peo, Nikos Gregoriou said the aim was not to strike but to safeguard labour relations and regulate the work environment.

He explained that workers had been “forced” into the stoppage after a year and a half of failed negotiations, accusing Paphos’ EOA of “refusing” to sign the agreement, despite similar agreements already being signed in Nicosia, Limassol and Larnaca.

Gregoriou called the delay “incomprehensible” and confirmed that negotiations would continue.

He added that employees should not lose rights they had before the local administration reforms, which led to the creation of EOAs.