Trade unions will hold a Cyprus-wide meeting on Wednesday to discuss the latest developments in the CoLA impasse, which could include extending or intensifying measures.

Unions from the private and public sectors staged a three-hour strike on September 11 calling for employers to return to the full payment of the Cost of Living Allowance.

General secretary of the SEK trade union Andreas Matsas said that although meetings were held last week by the labour minister with both them and employers, they have not received a fresh invitation for a further meeting.

“As things develop, the process becomes more difficult,” he said, adding that unions would attend if invited.

Employers too are set to meet to coordinate.

On October 2, the executive committees of the Employers and Industrialists Federation (OEV) and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Keve) will hold a joint session.

General director of OEV Michalis Antoniou told the Cyprus News Agency the meeting is intended for coordination and decision-making on CoLA in addition to other issues such as tax and pension reform.

He underlined that employers do not accept the principle of ‘CoLA for all’.

Shortly before the strike, Labour Minister Yiannis Panayiotou had proposed CoLA be paid to all workers but on a different scale according to income.

Antoniou said both OEV and Keve have been running economic models to test different options around competitiveness, inflation and household costs.

While employers are open to dialogue, he insisted their position on CoLA has not changed, describing the allowance as it stands as harmful to competitiveness in open economies.

Despite the differences, Antoniou expressed hope for convergence. “We are reaching out to trade unions and the government,” he said.

On Friday, Finance Minister Makis Keravnos said it was “inconceivable” that workers and employers could not reach an agreement over the future of CoLA.

“It is inconceivable at this time when the only country in the European Union which has zero inflation is Cyprus, while previously inflation was negative, that we cannot reach an agreement. That is why I appeal to all sides. It is a positive juncture to reach an agreement,” he said.

Labour Minister Yiannis Panayiotou meanwhile confirmed on Monday that no new meeting has been scheduled between himself and the unions and the employers.

“As soon as we have something to announce, you’ll know,” he told reporters.

He said efforts are ongoing in the background to bring the two sides closer together.

But he also noted that neither side should expect to “achieve everything that they want” – a call on employers and trade unions to demonstrate some flexibility in their respective positions.

Panayiotou went on to stress that the government “does not stand in opposition to either the business world or the trade unions”.

And he expressed confidence that the ‘social dialogue’ would ultimately yield a positive outcome.