Trade unions Pasydy, Sek, Peo, Deok, Pasyki and Pasyno on Friday expressed “deep concern” over the lack of progress in renewing the collective bargaining agreement with state health services provider Okypy.

“Despite our repeated and well-documented interventions, as well as the constructive spirit demonstrated throughout the consultations, the Okypy board continues to refuse to engage in substantive discussion on issues concerning salary prospects, career advancement and the fair treatment of the organisation’s employees,” the unions said in a joint statement.

The unions said they were particularly disappointed by Okypy’s alleged refusal to agree to the implementation of pay scales, arguing that the organisation’s “unjustified intransigent stance” was creating conditions of professional stagnation.

They added that Okypy’s position deprived staff of necessary prospects for professional growth and undermined “the sense of security that should prevail in a workplace”.

“(…) the board of directors has to date failed to demonstrate the necessary will for substantive progress, nor has it provided a clear commitment to continuing a genuine and productive dialogue on this specific issue,” the union said.

According to the unions, “significant provisions” and terms agreed in previous collective agreements had not been implemented, despite commitments made by Okypy.

The unions said that the effects of Okypy’s stance reached beyond the employees, warning that it had broader consequences for the smooth operation of Okypy, with a “large number of employees” seeking employment elsewhere.

“Consequently, the labour unions decided to send an official letter to the minister of health, with the aim of fully informing him of the position of the organisation’s board of directors, as well as the serious consequences this has for the staff and the operation of Okypy,” the statement concluded.

The unions also called on Health Minister Neophytos Charalambides to intervene in order to “break the deadlock” in the ongoing negotiations.