Nicosia:The total number of state employees reached 55,317 in October 2026, marking a small annual increase of 341 employees or 0.6% compared to October 2025, as reported by the Statistical Service on Wednesday.

According to Cyprus News Agency, employment in the civil service experienced a decline of 0.7%, whereas there was an increase in the educational service and security forces by 0.7% and 2.8%, respectively.

The data shows that the increase in total state employees was primarily among permanent employees, who saw a rise of 3.5% compared to October 2025. In contrast, there was a significant decrease of 13.1% in employees with contracts of definite duration.

Within specific sectors, hourly paid workers in the security forces recorded the largest percentage increase in employment at 14.2%. Conversely, employees with contracts of definite duration in the security forces experienced the largest percentage decrease of 97.6%, mainly due to the completion and non-renewal of specific contracts from August 2025 onwards.

For the period from January to October 2026, the average total number of state employees increased by 0.5% in comparison to the same period in 2025.