Teachers' union accuses CMTU of breaching own statute when voting

The teachers' union yesterday accused the Confederation of Maltese Trade Unions of breaching its own statute when it voted to suspend it on Saturday without any of its members being present at the meeting.

The Malta Union of Teachers said it could not understand how the confederation chose not to follow the provisions of its own statute in taking an arbitrary decision without allowing the affected union to explain its side of the story to the rest of the members who voted for its suspension.

When questioned about this, the president of the CMTU, William Portelli, said the union had twice been given the opportunity to explain its position to the confederation's council in the past weeks but failed to do so and kept coming up with excuses. He reiterated that the situation was untenable but added that the door was still open to the MUT, should it mend its ways.

The union's public pronouncement is the latest move in a deadlock which has led to it being suspended from the CMTU last Saturday after a unanimous vote.

The dispute started when the MUT proposed the formation of a Trade Union Council just days after all trade unions joined forces to protest against utility rates.

The MUT's proposal was described by CMTU president William Portelli as "untimely". Although the teachers' union took exception to this comment, Mr Portelli would not retract it.

The rift continued to widen when the CMTU and the Union Ħaddiema Magħqudin, one of the confederation's affiliates, publicly declared that they approved of the latest electricity rates while the MUT expressed reservations and declared it had no confidence in the CMTU's leadership.

Last Monday the confederation threatened to suspend the MUT's membership unless it changed its attitude towards the CMTU and its leaders.

In a statement yesterday, following Saturday's decision, the MUT said it will "keep looking ahead". The same confederation which had shielded free trade unions against the government in the 1970s, the MUT held, has today ended up in disorder, confusion and without a sense of direction.

The MUT said that its suspension strengthened its resolve to see trade unions work professionally and called on all unions of "good will" to step up efforts not only when there is a crisis but whenever worker interests are at stake, irrespective of who is in government.

The MUT will be writing to the European Trade Union Council secretary general John Monks to explain its position.