Trade union PEO has demanded the labour minister immediately publish employer compensation rates for telework costs, citing widespread law violations since 2023 legislation took effect.
PEO General Secretary Sotiroula Charalambous wrote to Labour Minister Yiannis Panayiotou requesting urgent public notification of minimum amounts employers must pay workers for home-based work expenses including equipment, electricity and internet connections.
The 2023 telework regulation law requires the minister to determine minimum employer payments following cost studies and consultations with worker and employer representatives, with results published in the official gazette.
“Until today you have not proceeded with the notification as referenced in the article, resulting particularly in workplaces without trade union representation that workers working from home with telework pay themselves the cost of equipment and any other expenses arising from telework,” Charalambous wrote.
The union leader described current practices as illegal, enabling employers to reduce costs at workers’ expense through telework arrangements.
“This is illegal and essentially gives employers the opportunity to use telework to reduce their costs at the expense of workers,” the letter stated.
PEO called for immediate gazette publication, worker and employer education on telework frameworks, and workplace inspections particularly in sectors utilising remote work arrangements.
The delay permits extensive employer violations in companies lacking union representation, with workers bearing equipment, electricity, internet and related home office costs, according to PEO.
The union emphasised equal protection requirements for all workers regardless of collective bargaining coverage.
Cyprus implemented telework legislation in 2023 establishing employer obligations for remote work cost coverage, but enforcement mechanisms remain pending ministerial action.
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