Immigrant construction workers paid €2 a day

Abuse of migrant workers is rampant in Malta, with cases of construction workers being paid €2 for a day's work.

General Workers' Union section secretary Andrew Mizzi said yesterday these were just a few incidents of workers' abuse and exploitation the union had dealt with in recent months.

He said these foreign construction workers, 68 in total, were living in a crammed 20-room hotel.

He cited the example of a Pakistani cook who was paid €163 a month, but his contract and pay slip read €862.

Mr Mizzi was addressing a national conference organised by the GWU entitled Fair Pay, Fair Play: Equal Rights, which dealt with the phenomenon of migrants on the labour market.

Mohammed, from Somalia, and Salem, from Ethiopia, spoke about their experiences in Malta and the abuse and discrimination they faced since they arrived here.

Mohammed came to Malta illegally in October 2004. He applied for refugee status but this was refused, and instead he was given humanitarian protection. He has been working at the Environmental Landscapes Consortium as a gardener for more than three years.

He said he pays taxes and his social security contributions like any other Maltese but questioned why he was unable to claim for unemployment benefits if he lost his job.

He called on political parties and government entities to support him and other immigrant workers facing similar situations.

Salem said he has been in Malta for four years and worked in the construction industry for two years before quitting and signing up for a course at university. He said when he was working he was not entitled to any sick leave and was not paid overtime.

"I suffered discrimination because of my skin colour. If people are employed legally, they should be protected from discrimination. There is not much discrimination at university. People there are more open-minded than other places," he said.

Addressing the conference, GWU general secretary Tony Zarb made a series of proposals which included setting up a national working group on migration, and drawing up an action plan on the subject.

He also proposed that all trade unions should make a joint effort for migrant workers to become union members so that they would be better protected, and that employers who exploited workers should be named and shamed.

Justice Minister Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici said the government condemned any abuse or exploitation of migrant workers and the discrimination they faced. He appealed to other immigrants, such as Mohammed and Salem to come forward with their stories so that action could be taken.

He said the other side of the coin with regard to the employment of migrant workers was that employers complained that after training them and giving them work experience, the employees left the island.

Labour deputy leader Anġlu Farrugia said the exploitation of employees was rampant in Malta, to their detriment and that of honest employers.