Important obligations for employers and rights for employees are provided for in the current framework for teleworking, payment of wages and transparent terms of employment in Cyprus.
Xenios Mamas, Senior Labour Relations Officer of the Department of Labor, during the portion co-organized by ICPAC with the department, noted that teleworking is governed by the Regulation of the Framework for the Organization of Teleworking Law of 2023, while payments and payroll statements are regulated by the amending law on the Protection of Wages.
Teleworking is defined as the provision of remote work using technology. It can be full-time or part-time and applies to private sector employees, legal entities governed by public law and local authorities. It does not, however, cover the narrow public sector.
As a rule, teleworking is voluntary in nature and requires an agreement between the employer and the employee. It can only be imposed for reasons of public health protection or when there is a documented risk to the employee's health, since the work can practically be performed remotely.
Teleworkers retain the same rights and obligations as employees employed at the employer's premises. This concerns, inter alia, working conditions, promotion opportunities, training, as well as occupational safety and health.
The framework also enshrines the right to disconnect from electronic media outside the agreed working time. The employer bears the cost of teleworking and must provide the necessary technical support.
Within eight days of the start of teleworking, the employer must inform the employee in writing of the relevant conditions, such as costs, technical support, tele-availability, disconnection and safety and health measures.
How salaries are paid
Based on the Wage Protection Law, wages are paid to a bank account or payment account of the employee's choice or by bank check in his name.
Cash payments are allowed only in specific cases, such as when the process of opening a bank account is pending for up to four months or when an application for opening an account has been rejected and there is a relevant certificate at the Department of Labour Relations.
Every employer must issue a monthly or weekly payslip. The payslip must be delivered in paper or electronic form within five working days from the date of payment of the salary.
Wage deductions may be made when provided for by law, collective agreement or general agreement. For other disconnections, a written and signed consent of the employee is required, which the employer must keep in a relevant file.
Information on working conditions
The Transparent and Predictable Working Conditions Law of 2023 obliges employers to inform employees of the essential terms of the contractor employment relationship, in printed or electronic form.
The basic information must be provided before the start of work or within seven days at the latest. It includes, inter alia, details of the two parties, place of work, job description, start date, remuneration and working hours.
Additional information, such as paid leave, training, collective agreements and social security, must be provided within one month of starting employment.
The law provides that the probationary period cannot exceed six months, with special provisions for fixed-term contracts. It also allows parallel employment, unless its restriction is objectively justified.
For work with variable hours, the assignment must be made within predetermined reference days and hours and with early notice. When the employer cancels an assignment outside the agreed deadline, the employee is entitled to compensation at least equal to the daily wage of that day.
