The connection between trade unions and political parties

abstract for a chapter in the forthcoming book

"Party-society relations in the Republic of Cyprus"

This chapter outlines the connection between the trade unions in Cyprus with the main political parties, tracing it from its beginnings in the 1940s, through its historical development during the era of independence, until today, the era of the Memorandum. The broader context of the formation of this historical connection is initially discussed in order to then build upon it an analysis of its content and implications for our contemporary times. The relationship is examined from its both sides – union and party and across the political cleavage of Left and Right. The chapter focuses on the consequences of this connection both for the creation in the 1970s and for the erosion in the 2000s of the labour relations system in Cyprus. Special emphasis is placed on the how this sustained connection in a time of crisis and austerity such as the 2010s becomes too constraining for the trade unions and damaging them further as they are discredited in the eyes of workers for the austerity policies of their political patrons.