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Unemployment in Cyprus reached a record 24,336 in March, prompting the Labour Ministry to consider the basis on which to extend the period of unemployment benefits to some 5,000 people who have been out of work for more than six months.

At present unemployment benefits are only paid for the first six months of unemployment.

March’s figure of 4,898 people registered as unemployed for more than six months is the highest ever.

The trade union federation has already proposed for the qualifying period for unemployment benefit to be extended immediately to nine months, and eventually twelve months.

Labour Minister Sotiroulla Charalambous said that any decision should be after the publication later this month of the results of a survey being carried out for the ministry by the Employment Observatory.
 

The survey posed a series of questions to a representative sample of 600 people who were unemployed from July 2009 to February 2010. The questions addressed what their work profile was before they became unemployed, their economic resources after the expiry of their unemployment benefit, participation in paid training schemes and so on.

 
Charalambous expressed concern that any discussion on extending benefit payments should take into account the factors on which economic recovery depends, as well as the potential impact on the Social Insurance Fund.

She added that it would be wrong to enable people to opt out of actively looking for work.
  
 
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