Blatant act of deregulation of labour relations with the government leading the way

Statement by AKEL MP Andros Kafkalias and Chairman of the Parliamentary Labour, Welfare and Social Insurance Committee

29 March 2022

Today we discussed in the Parliamentary \Labour Affairs Committee the employment status of teachers employed by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sport and Youth through the purchase of services system.

These teachers, ten years after the decision of this government – overnight – to change their employment status from salaried to self-employed workers, are still seeking their vindication.

This is a blatant act of deregulation of labour relations, seeking to conceal the employer-employee relationship, with the state itself as the employer. This is an act which has led to the loss of basic employment rights, such as the payment of unemployment and sickness benefits.

At the same time, the Government is in violation of the Administrative Court’s decision, which ruled “the decision of the Director of Social Insurance to be erroneous and misguided, the result of an inadequate investigation and not permissible under the circumstances”.  This is a decision which fully vindicates the teachers who have appealed to the courts.

The Government needs to at long last respect the rights of the workers and the Court’s decision.

The Parliamentary Committee called on the Ministry of Education to reconsider its position and consult with the stakeholders to find a solution.

The Committee will continue its discussion of the matter on 3 May