The Employment Law (100(1)/2000) in Cyprus includes both statute and case law. Specifically, Cyprus statute law contains issues related to the termination of employment, paid leave, annual social insurance, maternity leave, equal treatment at work e.t.c. The Labour Disputes Courts deals with issues related to the rights of employees and employers.
The Employment Law applies to every employee who has a contract or employment relationship in the private, public and semi-governmental sector.
The Employment Law does NOT apply to:
- employees whose total period of employment is less than one month;
- employees whose total hours of employment is less than eight hours in a given week;
- employees whose employment is of a casual nature and/or particular nature under the condition that in these cases the non-application of the Law is justified by objective reasons;
In this article, our employment lawyers will present the primary aspects of termination of employment in Cyprus, i.e. notice period, unlawful termination of employment and redundancy.
Under the Termination of Employment Law (24/1967), an employer intending to dismiss an employee, who has completed at least 26 weeks of continuous employment, is obliged to give the employee a minimum period of notice based on the length of his/her service, as illustrated below:
| 26 -51 weeks work (6 months- 1 year) | One week notice |
| 52 – 103 weeks work (1-2 years) | Two weeks notice |
| 104 – 155 weeks work (2-3 years) | Four weeks notice |
| 156- 207 weeks work (3-4 years) | Five weeks notice |
| 208 – 259 weeks work (4-5 years) | Six weeks notice |
| 260 – 311 weeks work (5-6 years) | Seven weeks notice |
| More than 312 weeks work (more than 6 years) | Eight weeks notice |
Unlawful termination of employment:
Following the Termination of Employment Law, an employee whose employment has been terminated unlawfully after completing 26 weeks of continuous employment with an employer is entitled to receive compensation. In addition, an employee who quit his/her job due to his/her employer’s conduct is also eligible to receive compensation. Second of all, it should be clarified that the amount of compensation is determined by the Labour Disputes Court following an application by the employee.
When assessing the amount of compensation, the Court takes into account the following criteria:
- The remuneration of the employee;
- The duration of employee’s service;
- The restriction of employee’s career prospects;
- The age of the employee;
- The circumstances of employee’s dismissal;
An employee cannot claim compensation if he/she terminated his/her employment for one of the following reasons:
- In case the termination of employment held as an outcome of redundancy, Act of God, war, riots, extreme weather conditions,;
- In case of dismissal due to redundancy;
- In case the employment is terminated at the end of fixed-term contract;
- In case the dismissal is due to employee’s fault;
How to receive compensation for unlawful dismissal:
Submitting an application for unlawful dismissal compensation requires professional legal support. The employment lawyers of Michael Chambers &Co. LLC will assist you with all the necessary legal and administrative procedures enabling you to receive the compensation that you deserve. Therefore, if you wish to receive customised legal support contact one of our lawyers.
Redundancy:
The amount of redundancy payment is calculated as illustrated below:
| Period of continuous employment | Amount of redundancy payment |
| Up to 4 years | 2 Weeks wages for each year of continuous employment |
| More than 4 and up to 10 years | 2,5 Weeks wages for each period of continuous employment |
| More than 10 and up to 15 years | 3 Weeks wages for each year of continuous employment |
| More than 15 and up to 20 years | 3,5 Weeks wages for each year of continuous employment |
| More than 20 and up to 25 years | 4 Weeks wages for each year of continuous employment |
How to claim redundancy payment:
In order to get payment from the Redundancy Fund, the employee must make a claim using the prescribed form, which is available at Social Insurance Offices, Citizen’s Service Centres and the official website of the Ministry of Labour and Social Insurance.
The claim must be submitted to the closest Social Insurance Office, within three months at the latest from the date of termination of employment. Nevertheless, in cases where the employee proves that he/she had a good reason for the delay, payment may be approved given that the claim is made within 12 months from the date of termination of his/her employment.
Our services:
The legal team of Michael Chambers &Co. LLC is able to provide you with the required legal support on all matters related to employment law and employment contracts. If you wish to speak to one of our lawyers, then contact us: info@chambers.law
