Unions' rift remains wide open

The teachers' union could not expect solidarity from the Union Ħaddiema Magħqudin unless it worked for it, the UĦM general secretary, Gejtu Vella said yesterday.

If the Malta Union of Teachers wanted the UĦM's support then it would have to rebuild the trust between his union and the confederation of unions, he said.

Mr Vella was replying to a statement issued by the MUT thanking the unions that were present at Friday's rally. During the rally, the MUT ordered a one-day strike on Thursday for teachers in all state and Church schools after complaining that the government had not started talks on an "addendum" to a 2007 agreement.

The unions present for the rally were the Forum of Maltese Trade Unions and the General Workers' Union, the MUT said.

The MUT said it had also invited the UĦM and the Confederation of Malta Trade Unions. "The UĦM expressed its solidarity with MUT when it was part of the CMTU. What happened made a difference and they cannot expect us to express solidarity the way they want," Mr Vella said.

Similarly, CMTU president William Portelli pointed out that the MUT did not form part of the confederation any more. Had the MUT not left, the CMTU would have done its best to see what needed to be done for its support, he said.

"Solidarity and credibility need to be worked for and both are lacking in the MUT," he said.

The MUT withdrew its membership of the CMTU and soon after joined Forum after a squabble that took place in December. The CMTU had suspended the MUT following a dispute after it had proposed the formation of a Trades Union Council just days after all trade unions joined forces to protest against the new utility rates.

The MUT's proposal was described by Mr Portelli as "untimely" and this led to a war of words. Although the teachers' union took exception to this comment, Mr Portelli refused to retract it.