Filenews 15 October 2023 - by Adamos Adamou
Every employee, in addition to obligations, also has rights. Rights that have recently been strengthened by new legislation, but also by amending existing legislation that protects wages.
However, many of the changes that are now in force are not widely known, not only to employees, but also to employers/businesses, so the information campaign that began last Monday and will last for at least two weeks is considered useful and helpful for both sides.
According to a relevant announcement by the Ministry of Labour, the campaign is carried out in cooperation with the Press and Information Office and concerns two new legislation that strengthens the protection of workers' labour rights. These are the Transparent and Predictable Working Terms Law, which was passed this year as a result of the adoption of a relevant EU directive, as well as the Wage Protection Law, amended in the context of last year, an amendment which, among other things, makes it mandatory for every employer to prepare and send a payslip, with which the employee can know and claim his salary and contributions and control his deductions.
The Ministry of Labour lists some of the main provisions of the two legislations and refers to the website of the Department of Labour Relations of the Ministry, where one can find not only the legislation as such but also relevant information guides and other useful material.
Timely information
The legislation that enhances the transparency and predictability of employees' terms of employment, among other things, reduces to 7 days the time now provided to the employer to inform the employee about the terms of employment (instead of 1 month) and establishes the obligation to refer to the constituent elements of remuneration beyond the basic salary. Also, in cases of non-fixed working hours, the employer must provide the employee with alternative information such as, inter alia, the framework of the hours within which employees can be called to work as well as guaranteed remuneration.
As mentioned in the relevant guide, the employer is obliged to inform each employee in writing, no later than 7 days from the start of employment, including the following information:
∙ The identity of the employer and the employee.
∙ The place where the work is performed and the registered office of the business or the home address of the employer or the principle that the work will be carried out in different places or the principle that the employee will determine his own place of work.
∙ Either the name, grade, nature or category of the employee's work, or a brief characterization or description of the job.
∙ The date of commencement of the employment contract/relationship or, in the case of fixed-term employment, its expiry date or its anticipated duration.
∙ The remuneration, including the basic salary, any other components of the remuneration which are listed separately, and the frequency and method of payment of the remuneration.
In cases of an unpredictable work schedule, inform the employee that the schedule is not fixed, as well as about (a) the hours and days that the employee may be called to work, (b) the number of guaranteed paid hours, (c) the remuneration for work beyond the guaranteed hours established under the employer-employee agreement, (d) the minimum notice period that the employer must give before the start of a specific work and, (e) the deadline for cancelling an assignment for a specific task.
6-month trial period
Under the same legislation, the probationary period, where it exists, may not exceed six months. In fact, in the case of fixed-term work, the probationary period must be proportional to its duration but not longer than six months. Also, in cases of fixed-term job renewals for the same position and duties, a new probationary period is not required. In the case of employees holding the position of adviser, chairman, director, secretary or other similar position in a legal entity, the probationary period may exceed six months, but may not be longer than two years.
In addition, the same law and the guide – which concerns the private sector – also answers the question of whether an employee can work for another employer at the same time. According to the guide, an employer cannot prohibit employment or treat unfavourably an employee who works for another employer outside his working hours.
Parallel employment with another employer may, however, be restricted for reasons relating to safety and health issues, protection of business secrets, integrity of the public sector and avoidance of conflicts of interest. The reasons for such restrictions must be notified in writing to the worker.
The legislation also safeguards the right of the employee to request a transition to another form of employment, provided of course that another form of employment is available. On this issue, it is stated that if such a form of employment is available, a request for transition to a form of employment with more predictable and secure working conditions can be submitted by any employee who has served more than 6 months with the same employer and has completed the probationary period. In case of such a request, the employer must notify the employee in writing of his response within one month.
Salary in cash, only weekly
The Protection Act, as also amended, significantly enhances transparency and concerns all employees. According to the same legislation, non-payment of salary is a criminal offense for the employer, something that is reminded and emphasized in the relevant guide of the Department of Labour Relations.
The guide also clarifies that it is now mandatory for all employees to issue and transmit to all employees a payroll statement by the employer; The issuance of a monthly or weekly payslip by the employer is mandatory and this must be given in paper or electronically, within five (5) working days from the date of payment of the salary. The payroll statement must include items such as basic salary and other benefits and all employer and employee contributions.
For when and how the salary should be paid, the following are mentioned:
∙ The salary must be paid to a bank or payment account* of the employee's choice or by bank cheque in the name of the employee.
∙ Exceptionally, the salary may be paid in cash if: a] the employee's application for account opening is pending and for a period of 4 months from recruitment. b] a banking institution refuses to open a payment account to an employee and a certificate issued by the banking institution is submitted to the Department of Labour Relations and provided that the employer keeps a record of the certificates. c] There is a written agreement that the salary will be paid on a weekly basis.
∙ The salary must be paid at least weekly, except for monthly paid staff, in which case it is paid at least monthly.
Salary deductions and complaints
It is clarified that deductions from salary are generally not allowed except for exceptions, such as deductions provided for by legislation (social security, taxation, etc.), cuts for pension, welfare and health care funds, deductions by court order, cuts with written and signed consent of the employee and cuts for those covered by a collective agreement or general agreement between employers and employees' representatives.
For further information or to submit a complaint, interested parties may contact the Department of Labour Relations of the Ministry of Labour and Social Insurance in writing at: Department of Labour Relations, 1431 Nicosia, via e-mail at: info@dlr.mlsi.gov.cy or by electronic submission of a request to: http://www.mlsi.gov.cy/dlr or by telephone at the offices of the Department Pancyprian.
