Employees at the Larnaca Port of the Larnaca Development Company (formerly KITION OCEAN PORT) staged a warning work stoppage today from 7:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., citing health and safety concerns, according to a statement issued by trade unions SEGDA-MELIN PEO and OMEPEG-SEK.

Natia Kyritsi, General Secretary of SEGDA-MELIN PEO, said that following the start of the work stoppage, the unions communicated with the Cyprus Ports Authority (CPA). She added that a meeting on the matter has been scheduled for tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. at the office of the CPA’s Director General in Nicosia.

In their joint statement, the unions stress that health and safety issues are of paramount importance and cannot be subject to compromise or concessions.

According to the employees, they are “requesting what should be taken for granted: access to clean drinking water, sanitary restroom facilities, and safe working environments free from potholes and exposed cables that pose risks to their workplace safety and health.”

They further note that repeated representations have been made on the matter to the Ministry of Transport and the Cyprus Ports Authority, but “nothing has been rectified.”

As workers and trade unions, the statement adds, they “demand that the Ministry of Transport and the Minister personally ensure that our workplaces are clean and safe, so that employees can work and return to their homes healthy and unharmed.”

At the same time, they call on the Ministry of Labour to ensure that the Occupational Safety and Health Law is strictly enforced, “regardless of the workplace or employer.”