GWU says MEA’s employment proposals are ‘regressive’

The General Workers’ Union has described the Malta Employers Association’s proposals for the amendment of the Employment and Industrial Relations Act as “regressive”.

In a press conference, GWU’s general secretary Tony Zarb said that these proposals could result in “industrial trouble”.

The MEA have proposed that absenteeism from work due to “self-inflicted unfitness for work…including sports injuries and hangover” should not entitle the employee to sick-leave, even if certified by a doctor as unfit for work. The GWU believes that a medical certificate should entitle an employee to paid sick-leave in “any circumstance”.

The MEA proposed that employers should be authorized to deduct their employees’ wages in certain circumstances, such as when an employee does not work their notice period or when an employee doesn’t work for at least six months following maternity leave. The GWU said that all salary deductions must first be approved by the Director of Jobs and Industrial Relations.

The MEA proposed that employees who do not follow a standard Monday to Friday week should forfeit those public holidays that fall on their days of rest as it would otherwise discriminate against employees who lose public holidays that fall on the weekend. The GWU wants to discuss how these ‘lost’ public holidays are given back to employees over a range of time.  

The employers want the maximum compensation awarded by an Industrial Tribunal capped so that it doesn’t exceed 18 months' salary. The GWU believes that the tribunal should be free to make its own decisions on compensations.

The GWU does not agree with the MEA’s proposal for a legal definition of a “union member”.

“If an employer takes long to submit their workers’ member fees to the union, will those workers be in risk of not legally being considered as union members?” the GWU asked.

However, the GWU did agree with the MEA that the process by which trade unions are recognized should be reformed. In fact, Zarb said that they will be putting forward their own proposals in the coming days.