Cyprus-Forum.com

[Raymanoff]

Today i tried to deposit a cheque of National bank to Bank of Cyprus and i was told that they are not accepting cheques of this bank anymore.

Then i went to Alpha Bank, same...

Then in Laiki...same

Then i decided to cash it in the National Bank itself.
Today they had a security guard outside the branch for some reason.

Anyway, they did not cash my cheque because it was on my company name even tho i showed them company registration papers.

Is the shit really starting to hit the fan over here???

[DT.]

The trade union for bank employees has decided to protest the firing of 2 National Bank employees and for 2 hours refuse to transact with the National Bank.

Nothing to do with the crisis just good old fashion Cypriot Trade Unions.

[Nikitas]

Were other people doing business at the bank? Were they refused service too?

[DT.]

Were other people doing business at the bank? Were they refused service too?

Trade Unions!

[DT.]

Bank union orders boycott in retaliation against sackings
By Elias Hazou

ACT II of the ongoing feud between the National Bank of Greece and ETYK (union of bank employees) played out yesterday, with the union launching a new boycott against the bank.

The powerful union has ordered all other commercial banks not to process transactions with NBG.

The drastic measure came in response to the laying off of two NBG employees. The union says the two were summarily and illegally fired, without due process.

And today, a general assembly of ETYK will convene to examine further action, including possibly a nationwide strike (or strikes) by bank employees as a sign of solidarity with their sacked colleagues.

The bad blood between NBG and the union dates back to last summer, after the bank seconded two employees from its Athens headquarters to its Cyprus branch.

The ensuing dispute resulted in a one-month lockout called by NBG’s management, after employees at the bank’s IT department went on strike, reportedly at the behest of the union. In a suspected act of sabotage, the IT staff had taken with them the access codes to the computer network, crippling the bank’s operations.

But under pressure from the Central Bank, the Chamber of Commerce and the competition watchdog, the union was forced to lift the embargo, and the two sides got into a dialogue mediated by the Labour Ministry.

To many it seemed that the union’s bid to turn NBG into the black sheep of the banking community had backfired.

The Mail understands that at least one of the two employees now fired was working at the IT department during last year’s crisis, although neither had participated in the strike.

Apparently the employees in question were given the sack for incompetence. This could not be confirmed, however.

In a polemical circular yesterday, the union slammed the bank for its “vindictive rage”, claiming the two employees were laid off because they were members of ETYK.

In the wake of the showdown last summer, the vast majority of NBG employees – who sided with management against ETYK — went on to form their own separatist union. However, some 100 bank employees are still affiliated to ETYK.

The latter is accusing NBG’s management of a policy of “staff cleansing” — of using underhand tactics to get rid of the last vestiges of ETYK sympathisers.

According to ETYK, the employees had been marked men for a while, and following last year’s showdown they had been reassigned. The union claims the two were effectively demoted and “underemployed”. This was done deliberately, so that subsequently management could claim the two were redundant.

ETYK charged that on Monday the two employees were simply called into the office of the bosses and simply told they were being fired. The union says this was against the rules because employees should be warned in advance so that they can prepare their defence.

“Our two colleagues were fired in cold blood,” read ETYK’s circular yesterday. The fiery statement was titled: “The Crime Continues – the National Bank of Greece continues to victimise colleagues who are members of ETYK.”

It went on to slam NBG for “imposing a climate of terror” among its personnel.

The bank itself rebutted allegations of ill treatment, but declined to go into the reasons for its decision.

“We are not the only business that lays off people, which is never an easy decision,” said Michalis Kokkinos, general manager of NBG.

“But if we so much as breathe, all hell breaks loose. It seems ETYK has it in for us,” he told the Mail.


Copyright © Cyprus Mail 2008

[Nikitas]

thanks DT. Here in Athens the NB is working just fine, i just got back from there.

[DT.]

thanks DT. Here in Athens the NB is working just fine, i just got back from there.

You haven't got the pleasure of Hadjicostis and his soviet style trade unions there.

[CBBB]

DT wrote:

You haven't got the pleasure of Hadjicostis and his soviet style trade unions there.

And the a-hole has been on Ethniki's payroll for the last god knows how many years without doing a days work for them.

During that time he has also had numerous promotions.

It is obvious that Ethniki would not employ his relatives (unlike Laiki) and that is why he is so pee'd off with them.

[Raymanoff]

The whole NOMIMOS IPALLILOS ® scheme is got to dissolve in Cyprus... people (especially gov.workers) must be evaluated every now and then.

[CBBB]

The whole NOMIMOS IPALLILOS ® scheme is got to dissolve in Cyprus... people (especially gov.workers) must be evaluated every now and then.

'

I'll drink to that even though my wife and one of my sons work for a local bank.

I am sure that if the banks were able to weed out the jobsworths, pay and conditions for the real workers would still be good. Ditto for the Government, but that will never happen. At least the banks could make a stand if they had the balls for it.