Government brings meeting forward as Kition sends dismissal letters

Kition Ocean Holdings sent dismissal letters to the employees at Larnaca’s port and marina on the evening of 28 May, according to the workers’ unions, prompting the government to bring a scheduled meeting over the matter a day forward.

The news follows an announcement by the consortium on 29 May, urging the government to respect the workers’ rights following the termination of the two sides’ contract to develop the Larnaca port and marina, but failing to mention the dismissal letters.

“Yesterday evening, dismissal letters were handed to Kition’s employees by the company,” Charalambos Avgousti, member of the union OMEPEGE-SEK, told the Cyprus News Agency. He added that the employees have turned up to the port as usual, despite the dismissals.

As a result of the above, he said, the meeting that had been scheduled to take place between the unions and Transport and Labour Ministers on the morning of 30 May has been brought forward to the afternoon of 29 May.

“The meeting with the two ministers has been brought forward to this afternoon, following the Council of Ministers meeting,” said Avgousti, adding that employees were expecting to be informed about where they will be employed.

He reiterated the two ministers’, but also President’s, assurances that the matter will be settled.

“I think we all have the will to ensure that these workers are not victimised, therefore a way will be found,” said Avgousti. He noted that a preliminary discussion had already taken place with the Minister of Labour, where some ideas were discussed as to how the matter might be resolved. “I believe that some of what we discussed on Monday will be implemented,” he said, noting that he is optimistic.

According to Avgousti, the port is operating as normal – with the exception of the cranes and machinery that are owned by Kition. The ships are being offloaded with other machinery, he added, though conceding that the pace is somewhat slower.

The general secretary of trade union SEGDAMELIN-PEO, Nadia Kyritsi, also confirmed the dismissal letters had been sent, saying: “Our position is that the same job that Kition had will be taken over by someone else. That someone else must employ the people who are already there doing the job.”

She said the existing employees are fully trained professionals with a regulated work mandate, who are fully aware of their terms of employment through the relevant collective agreement.

“The new regime must employ the workers that did the work at the port, with the same terms and their collective agreement,” she said, adding that the collective agreement expires on 1 June 2025.

As she said, the operational part of the port employs cablemen, porters, crane drivers, technical electrical engineers, the logistics department and clerical staff.

Kyritsi said she was expecting all these matters to be clarified during the meeting with the government, while adding that the workers’ right to continue in their employment was “non-negotiable”.

Meanwhile, President Nikos Christodoulides reassured the port workers that there was nothing to worry about, and that the matter was going to be discussed by the Council of Ministers ahead of the afternoon meeting.