Union, management disagree on whether they disagree

Tourists who flock to visit St John's Co-Cathedral, in Valletta, may well find the doors closed later this week after the Professionals and Services Employees Union gave notice of industrial action over disagreement on a collective agreement.

The union said the collective agreement expired 11 years ago and yesterday it accused the management of ignoring its demands.

The management, however, said agreement had been reached on all issues and that there must be a misunderstanding.

PSEU president Karmenu Vella yesterday wrote to Mgr Philip Calleja, the president of the St John's Co-Cathedral Foundation, saying that following the appointment of Cynthia Degiorgio as CEO, the union had offered solutions to long-existing problems and expected a reply.

"But in spite of several meetings and interventions by the Director of Labour and Industrial Relations, Noel Vella, instead of solving existing problems new ones were created," the union's Mr Vella said.

He claimed the foundation was not only dragging its feet on the collective agreement but there were flagrant breaches of the expired agreement regarding the payment of overtime and problems with the roster for part-timers. "This not to mention the negative attitude by foundation officials towards the shop steward," Mr Vella said.

The union said the situation was no longer acceptable and Mgr Calleja and the Director of Labour and Industrial Relations had been informed about the existence of an industrial dispute and of imminent industrial action.

Contacted for a reaction, Ms Degiorgio said she was surprised by the union's statement.

"I have only been CEO for a month and the collective agreement is at our lawyer for vetting before this is given to the union to be signed.

"I thought we had reached an agreement on all issues. I am sure there is a lack of communication and misunderstanding on the union's part," she said.