PRESIDENT Tassos Papadopoulos was yesterday confronted by striking staff from the duty free shop at Larnaca airport as they waved placards at his passing motorcade on his way to catch a flight to Brussels.
Papadopoulos said the strike, which entered its fifth consecutive day yesterday, was “groundless and absurd” when asked about it inside the airport building.
The 212 staff from the two duty free shops, one at Larnaca and one at Paphos, have been striking on an off for months, but the past five day have been the longest stretch since the industrial action began.
The workers want the government to secure their jobs with whoever the new operator of the airport will be when a deal is finally struck, probably the Hermes consortium.
The duty free shops are run by Cyprus Airways, but the airline has no say in the talks and cannot apply for operation of the shops under the new owners until an agreement is ultimately signed. The staff say other civil aviation staff jobs have been secured and want the same treatment.
Transport Minister Haris Thrasou has managed to secure 170 of the 212 duty free jobs under existing terms but the staff say they are not satisfied. Despite new talks getting under way last week, the employees chose to continue with the strike action.
Papadopoulos referred to this when he launched his scathing attack on the strikers. He said the duty free employees were not employed by the government and that the state had no responsibility for securing their jobs. He pointed out that his Transport Minister had made huge efforts to secure as many jobs as he could, even though the new contractor has no obligation to retain the duty free staff.
“This is completely unfounded and absurd,” he said of the strike. “I consider the demands to unrealistic.”
He said the staff that were not to be retained were looking to return to work at the Finance Ministry, although for several years now they have not been considered public servants.
“These are the type of requirements they have,” he said, adding that their real employer was Cyprus Airways.
“I don’t understand what they are basing their demands on or on what basis this strike is taking place,” Papadopoulos said.
As the president approached the airport roundabout at around 10.30am yesterday, the workers waved their placards at the convoy, which also included Foreign Minister George Iacovou.
“Cyprus Airways and the state collected £200 million from the duty free shops and they did not guarantee the jobs of the 212 employees a Larnaca and Paphos,” said one placard.
The strikers made no attempt to block the road, however, and the police presence was heavy.
Until now the strike has cost Cyprus Airways over £1 million.
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