CyBC employees to strike after payments delayed for over a month

Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation (CyBC) employees announced on Wednesday that they will be carrying out strikes after having faced delayed payment of their salaries for over a month.

Meanwhile, a meeting has been scheduled between stakeholders at the Ministry of Labour for 12.30pm, with hopes to resolve the issue.

The payment delays are due to late submission of the national broadcaster’s budget to Parliament.

The strike action comes after CyBC employees’ patience ran out, having being unpaid for February and now facing the prospect of repeated late payment for March.

The unions communicated their decision to CyBC management after a letter from the director of personnel informed staff that the corporation’s accounts had been frozen and payroll would be affected.

The blocking of CyBC’s bank accounts has already affected hundreds of employees who have yet to receive their salaries for the month of February.

Unions announced that strikes will be held every day from 1.30pm-2.30pm and 8pm-9pm starting on Friday until employees get paid.

Employees cannot be victimised and the non-payment of wages goes against legislation protecting workers’ rights to full and timely payment, the unions have stated.

They added that, moreover, the CyBC management and administration are fully responsible for the situation.

In statements last week, the unions had called on the recently inaugurated board of directors to “address the issue of proper functioning of the organisation and to act quickly in order to ensure the timely payment of March salaries, as provided for under relevant regulations.”

The announcement was communicated to the ministries of interior and finance as well as to Parliament so that they could assist in the matter.

“The tolerance and patience of the staff for the CyBC’s administrative weaknesses has been exhausted,” and these weaknesses are now affecting employees’ labour rights and the organisation’s credibility and standing, the unions said.

They also charged that CyBC management had tried to absolve itself of responsibility by claiming the delayed payments were not due to internal failures but due to changes enacted by the interior and finance ministries in September and October 2023.