Vince Farrugia denies calling workers ‘rats’ during MCESD meeting

GRTU director-general Vince Farrugia has categorically denied having referred to workers under precarious conditions as "rats", after minutes from an MCESD meeting were presented in court on Friday.

In a statement, the GRTU said Farrugia's reference had been to 'bogus' self-employed individuals who employed unfair competition practices by not declaring their incomes, pay VAT or licences and other obligations, to the detriment of genuine self-employed workers.

"GRTU has been fighting this kind of unfair competition for years. Court witnesses yesterday did not understand properly what Farrugia was saying... the GRTU director insists that he was referring to those who abuse and steal from who is genuinely self-employed."

The MCESD's executive secretary Sylvia Gauci yesterday told a court that the Chamber of SMEs' director-general Vince Farrugia had described members of the General Workers Union as "rats", during a libel case filed by the union's secretary-general against Farrugia.

Witnesses said Farrugia called workers "rats" during a meeting of the Malta Council for Economic and Social Development, and that the less than pleasant comment had been minuted.

Zarb later felt that comments Farrugia have to TVM had implied he had manipulated the MCESD minutes of the meeting, after the GWU newspaper l-orizzont reported Farrugia's comments about workers who hold down a precarious job.

According to the 14 November, 2011 meeting's minutes, Zarb said that the government should address dangerous work practices. In response, Farrugia said that Zarb should have the union tend to these workers, whom he described as "rats" - MCESD chairman Sonny Portelli told the court. At this point, three GWU members and Portelli himself intervened to calm down matters. Portelli denied any pressure to amend the minutes.