The Association of Catering, Entertainment and Leisure Professionals of the Limassol District "ASPIDA" is dissatisfied with the continuation of the safe pass measure.
As it says, the continuation of the measure refers not only to further increased costs but also to depriving the already reduced staff of full services.
At the same time they speak of targeting specific professional activities and injustice.
Moreover, they call on the Minister of Health and those responsible to reconsider the issue of the removal of the compulsory Safe Pass in catering establishments.
In detail:
"The Association of Catering, Entertainment and Leisure Professionals of the Limassol District, "ASPIDA", a member of the Federation of Employers & Industrialists (OEB), expresses its dissatisfaction with the decision of the Council of Ministers to continue the mandatory Safe Pass check in catering, leisure and entertainment premises over 100 square meters.
These activities have been hit hardest in the last two years due to the measures adopted to contain the pandemic, with the result that prolonged lockdowns and the mandatory suspension of the operation of premises have led businesses and their employees to a financial deadlock, while many have even been forced to close down their operations.
At the same time, at a particular time when businesses are struggling to find staff and many are forced to reduce their working hours due to understaffing, they are forced to take on additional obligations that make it even more difficult for them to operate. The continuation of safepass checks points not only to further increased costs - many operators outsource the checking of digital certificates to private security services - but also to the deprivation of the full services of already reduced staff who are diverted from their normal duties to enable compliance with the orders.
While the restrictive measures are fully lifted in the major economies of Western Europe, in Cyprus they remain in place and target specific professional activities. The Association considers it unfair that the Safe Pass check should be terminated in workplaces where there is a high degree of co-mingling of people using common items or that free access should be allowed in retail and large shopping centres but that it should be required in places of catering, entertainment and leisure. In this case, the majority of people come in on booking and socialise with the people around them.
Therefore, if a positive case is detected, individuals are able to notify their contacts and businesses have the contact details for each booking made and can hand them over to the relevant authorities.
Moreover, it has been observed that even when places of catering, entertainment and recreation were closed, COVID-19 cases were on the rise. On the contrary, there is no documented evidence that these places have been responsible for the increase in cases, which is mostly due to the social interactions of our citizens with their family members, friends, schools and workplaces.
ASPIDA makes a last appeal to the Council of Ministers and the Members of the Epidemiological Panel to reconsider the issue of removing the compulsory Safe Pass in catering, entertainment and leisure venues as prolonged compliance with the measure, especially in the uncertain times we are entering, will have dire consequences for professionals in the field."
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