The breakdown of social dialogue within the Cypriot police is undermining the island's EU Council presidency. The European Police Association EuroCOP warns of this in a letter to leading representatives of the European Union.

The association wrote a letter to the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Council, António Costa, and the EU Commissioner for Home Affairs, Magnus Brunner.

The letter of 2 February, signed by the Head of the EuroCOP Office, Nigel Dennis, was also forwarded to Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides and to the General Secretary of the European Trade Union Confederation, Esther Lynch.

According to the letter, EuroCOP is in close contact with the police union Isotita in view of the increasing tensions with the police chief.

The talks held, it is said, "revealed a profound breakdown of the social dialogue, characterized by the refusal to engage in meaningful negotiations, the lack of responses to official correspondence, and allegations of intimidation against union members."

EuroCOP describes these practices as "completely unacceptable and fundamentally incompatible with European standards for industrial relations". The situation is particularly worrying against the background that Cyprus currently holds the EU Council Presidency.

"At a time when the Presidency is expected to embody the core values of the Union, the refusal of a genuine social dialogue in a central public service undermines the credibility of the European commitment to social rights and the rule of law," it continues.

Dennis recalled that the right of workers and their organisations to collective bargaining and collective action is enshrined in Article 28 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union.

The European Pillar of Social Rights, the European Social Charter and a relevant EU directive on adequate minimum wages also oblige Member States to promote these principles. However, the current situation in Cyprus calls into question its effective implementation, he warned.

The police chief's refusal to engage in dialogue with the police union, combined with the lack of intervention by the Cypriot government, represents "a failure of leadership and government responsibility that seriously undermines trust within the police service," Dennis continued.

The explosive nature of the situation became clear on January 21, when Cypriot police officers publicly protested in front of the parliament. Such demonstrations are extremely unusual in Europe and indicate "a profound institutional failure".

"The ongoing breakdown of relations between police leadership and staff representatives not only violates social rights, but can also have serious consequences for morale, operational performance and ultimately public safety," Dennis said.

EuroCOP also stressed that those police officers responsible for the safety of European leaders, commissioners and delegations at events under the Cyprus Presidency "work under conditions of intimidation and without genuine social dialogue".

"It is crucial that the EU leadership is fully aware of this contradiction," Dennis wrote.

EuroCOP fully supports the police union, the association concludes, and calls for immediate action to encourage the Cypriot authorities to "restore substantial, genuine social dialogue in line with European standards".











Source: CyprusMail.com with permission for editorial use
Author: Alexandra Theodorou