Union complains Oncology centre doctors paid more than state colleagues

GOVERNMENT doctors are up in arms over the fact that their colleagues at the newly opened Oncology Centre are getting paid more than them.

An announcement from the government doctors union, Pasyki, said yesterday that, “keeping in mind the generous agreement that was signed between the government and the Bank of Cyprus for the establishment of the Oncology Centre and the provision that calls for the government to pay for the Centre’s running costs, either in the form of a yearly budget or with the method of purchasing services, (the union) considers that the salaries of the government doctors that have been appointed to the Centre are larger than those of corresponding doctors at government hospitals. We are against this discrimination and ask for corresponding treatment to avoid unnecessary conflicts in the sensitive health sector.”

The statement adds that the Union finds it unacceptable that heads of hospitals such as the Nicosia or Limassol generals, “with a higher work load and responsibility,” should be paid less than the head of the Oncology Centre, who’s salary the union put at over £50,000 per year.

The Union said it had information that the Bank was subsidising a proportion of the salaries, claiming this was being done “under the table” and would give the Bank the right to have a say in the hiring of staff.

“The government’s consent to these types of arrangements is incomprehensible, ” Pasyki said, “because it creates unequal conditions in the treatment of government doctors.”

The announcement cited occasions where public servants provided their services to international organisations and were paid by the government. Pasyki said that when such organisations had offered to pay the employees’ fees, the government had refused saying that it would cause a negative precedent; in the case of the Oncology Centre, it continued, “the extra fee (an unknown amount) is allowed to be given by the Bank of Cyprus.”

Pasyki said they were demanding a rise in salaries at all levels

to correspond with those at the Oncology Centre.

The agreement between the Bank of Cyprus and the government was for the Bank to set up the Centre but for the government to pay its running costs, including doctors’ salaries.

Bank of Cyprus representatives were unavailable for comment on the union claims yesterday.

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