Evictions, foreclosures and rents continue to strangle households, families and small businesses
Statement by AKEL C.C. Spokesperson Stefanos Stefanou
AKEL C.C. Press Office, 6th November 2020, Nicosia
The need for Government support towards working people and businesses operating in sectors severely affected by the pandemic is imperative. The measures announced by the Ministry of Labour are the result of a dialogue conducted with the trade unions and are generally moving in the right direction. Of course, there are shortcomings that leave various groups of professional groups and workers unprotected, such as the people of Culture, gym owners and other professionals.
At the same time, vigilance is demanded on the part of the Ministry of Labour to combat the phenomenon of illegal dismissals of workers, reductions in wages and salaries and any arbitrary interpretations of the decrees by employers. AKEL calls on every working person to react and denounce any attempt by employers to violate their rights and dignity.
We point out that the support measures do not touch on and don’t address burning problems, such as evictions, foreclosures and rents that remain unresolved and continue to strangle households, families and small businesses. The government not only did not propose any real solutions to the issue of rents, but the President of the Republic referred the law providing protection against evictions during the period of the pandemic.
At the same time, the government, in coordination with the banks, opposes AKEL’s Proposal for a Draft Bill to suspend the foreclosure of the primary family home and small businesses until the end of March 2021. In other words, they do not care about the risk of families and small businesses ending up on the street.
