Nurses reported “unjustified” overtime and are threatening a strike

The Health Services Organisation (Okypy) oversight body reviewed the nurses’ claims about unjustified overtime and concluded that many additional hours are not substantiated, the organisation’s representative Charalambos Charalampous said on Wednesday.

Charalampous noted that 40 nurses were hired in 2025, with the most recent starting work two days ago. According to him, there are no staff shortages in the general hospitals of Limassol, Paphos and Famagusta. At Makarios Hospital, the staff deficit has been significantly reduced.

At the same time, shortages of 20 nurses were recorded in Nicosia and Larnaca. Charalampous added that even if another 75 nurses were needed, this number does not justify the threat of a strike.

Nurses’ unions in Cyprus, however, warn that they are ready for strike action if the staff shortage in public hospitals is not resolved. The general secretary of Pasyno, Savvas Iakovou, stated the need for the immediate hiring of 75 nurses and noted that out of 2,850 clinical nurses, about 150 are absent daily due to chronic illnesses, maternity leave and other types of leave.

District meetings of Pasyno members granted the board the authority to declare strike measures; a decision on potential work stoppages will be made at a meeting on Friday. Prodromos Argyriades, head of the nursing department of the Pasidy union, proposed including the hiring of 75 nurses in Okypy’s budget and additionally recruiting 50 more to replace retirements and long-term absences.