Sofia Kannas
WORKERS’ union PEO yesterday denied allegations that they had accosted employees at Orphanides Supermarkets.
Panicos Theodorou, General Secretary of PEO Union, told the Cyprus Mail that his union had never harassed the supermarket employees in an attempt to force them to join unions.
“On the contrary, we have a significant number of signatures from Orphanides’ employees who want to join our union. But unfortunately their employer won’t let them.
“They have even fired a couple of employees for trying to join unions. In fact rumour has it that there is a list circulating in the shop demanding employees promise not to join unions – whoever refuses to sign it risks losing their job.”
Theodorou denied claims that union members visited homes of the supermarket chain’s employees and attempted to blackmail them into joining a union.
“We visited their homes because we are not able to approach them on the work premises. If we try and enter the supermarkets we are turned away before we are able to speak to the employees. And they are not allowed to approach us either. So this is why we are reduced to visiting them at home.
“It was the only option left to us,” he added.
Asked what the unions planned to do about the matter, Theodorou said a meeting would be held today.
“We will have a meeting with Orphanides at the Labour Ministry to try and resolve the issue.”
Christos Orphanides, owner of Orphanides supermarkets was unavailable for comment yesterday.
The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.
