Prime Minister’s office offers to mediate in HSBC strike action

The Malta Union of Banking Employees launches a full-blown strike on Tuesday, after HSBC Malta threatened a lock-out against employees obeying directives for a communications ban and sit-in earlier last week.

MUBE and the bank have been on the warpath ever since HSBC reneged on a collective agreement forged back in August 2014.

“Apart from not taking the local workforce and collective bargaining seriously, HSBC’s decision to threaten lock-out against those employees obeying the directive is also an insult to customers. This has left MUBE no other option but to issue a full-blown strike, completely removing the possibility of any other directives milder in nature,” MUBE president William Portelli said.

The union also said that attempts by the Malta Employers’ Association to mediate had failed and that even the Office of the Prime Minister had offered to mediate.

“Unfortunately, this also shows that the current top management team is underestimating the threat it is posing to the country’s economic stability through its actions especially when management had been repeatedly warned. The attitude is such that it is also reflecting badly on the practice and management continuously ignores the disparity that exists at certain levels of categories of staff,” Portelli said.

The union said that HSBC had not found grounds to agree on an increase in the minima of the salary ranges; unilaterally awarded only a minimal increase in salary; withdrew the financial packaged from what was ‘practically an agreed deal’; and complained of “frenetic bank practices and work overload.”

“As proven by its track record, MUBE’s preferred option is always to discuss. However, the threat of lock-out has all the more instigated MUBE to go out for a full blown strike action. No concrete proposals have been forthcoming since last September,” Portelli said.

The union said there was no clear indication that management was willing to conclude negotiations for the benefit of all employees and the business.

The GWU is also supporting the directives.