Employers welcome 'yes' vote at ST
The Malta Employers' Association has welcomed the 'yes' vote by the workers to the agreement reached between the GWU and ST Microelectronics on austerity measures.
The MEA said the agreement "is conducive to further investment which will help to retain existing jobs and to create others both within ST and in other companies as well."
The association said the workers and unions were faced with a difficult choice but ultimately the workers opted for the one which was in their interest and that of the company.
"In order to move forward, one must, at times, inevitably make a minor step backwards. The outcome of these negotiations has been the result of maturity on the parts of the company, the union and the employees," the MEA said.
29 Comments
Post comment
Please sign in or create your Account to post comments.
M Saliba
Jul 28th 2010, 21:46
The workers would have had a real choice if alternative jobs were available in Malta. Create more alternative jobs, to stop this dependancy on ST. The choice made was not a step foreward in the workers' conditions of work.
Why are the workers being encouraged to accept 'austerity'? As far as I know this word belongs to Greece and not to Malta.
A. Borg
Jul 28th 2010, 18:41
Common sense prevailed. Issa fitxu job ahjar u dabru raskhom.
john smith
Jul 28th 2010, 18:37
IL KOLEGGA TAL QAWRA NAJDLU STAY RELAX AND ENJOY THE SUMMER NOW!!!
U ISSA NARAW KEMM SE JIMXU TA NIES ID DIRETURI TA ST MALTA MANA IL HADDIEMA.U NISPERAW !!! U KURAGG
Joseph Cilia
Jul 28th 2010, 15:52
So the workers are readu to make sacrifices for the wellbeing of the company and to safeguard their jobs. Will the company reciprocate when the millions in profit start pouring in? Can they expect a share of the Profit?
Charles Callus
Jul 28th 2010, 15:38
So, what did our government ACTUALLY negotiate with ST?
I mean, if the new austerity measures were the whole point of whether ST was keeping its production facilties in Malta - "do or die" what has the government actually achieved when we look back at this issue?
l fenech
Jul 28th 2010, 15:07
minor step sabieh, ha naraw kemm ser jghamlu minor step lura min ghandu pagi sa l-istilel.
Alexis Brincat
Jul 28th 2010, 14:06
Il managers ha jonqsulhom il pagi u il benificcji ?
maria d.sacco
Jul 28th 2010, 13:16
@All who comment: don't be melodramatic, don't immerse this bit of news in a political crucible, be realistic and stop shooting off the hip. Nobody owes anybody a living, punto e basta. It is a case of choosing the lesser evil. That's all. Period.
CHARLES SEISUN
Jul 28th 2010, 13:09
Perhaps, it's time for many Maltese families to reconsider migrating to Australia, as in the olden years!
There was no such thing as a financial crisis here, at all, and infact, we were the only Western country that didn't have to bring interest rates to less than 5%, as business and life in general just went on as normal.
It would be great if this great Southern Land increases in the number of first Maltese migrants once again! However others may percieve this comment to be, I say that we are one of those few peoples that have fitted in the whole Australian picture from every angle - socially, linguistically, economically, religiously and culturally. So... come on down, (to Australia)!
ALBERT FENECH
Jul 28th 2010, 13:00
There are lessons to be learnt from these contributions (blogs). Discount the dinosaurs who yearn for a return to Leninism-Stalinism, where so-called "workers' communes" impose diktat on national development (countries like Russia, Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria etc which continue to struggle to haul themselves into the reality of the 21st Century), and where collective representation (misguided) and "protectionism" are at the basis of their heart-beats. Dear dinosaurs - the world has moved on. The Maltese worker is skilled, industrious, clever, flexible, adaptable and highly-technically gifted. Our work-force must not be held back in shackles by the dinosaurs. As GWU Section Secretary Mr Andrew Mizzi has been saying all week, he is in the forefront for extracting as much as he can get for his members, but he also knows how much he can stretch the elasticity. This country still has many technical skills and attributes to offer industrialists. We cannot afford to allow the dinosaurs still struggling in the mid-20th century to strangle the roots of our young, brave and new workforce in the 21st. To all workers everywhere - if you want the good things in life you have to work for them and not lie back depending on protectionism.
Gejtu Farrugia
Jul 28th 2010, 12:20
U x'tistenna mill-Employers. Issa ghandom precedent biex ihajjru aktar employers jaghmlu l-istess. U addio Collective Agreements u zidiet kull sena. L-MEA se tkun komplici mal-Gvern u l-unions biex jitkattar aktar il-faqar u l-ghaks f'Malta. Qed nesagera? Iz-zmien jaghtina parir!
John Micallef
Jul 28th 2010, 13:14
Naqbel mieghek perfetament!!
Il- problema hi, li jekk din id-darb saret bi skop genwin ghadda ikun hemm xi gustuz li juzha bieh ihaxen butu.
zgur li jekk inhu jum sabih ghal min ihaddem, zgur mhuiex l-istess ghalina il- klassi tal- haddiema
O Galea
Jul 28th 2010, 12:11
In my opinion, the ST employees did the right decision. Let us not forget the Phoenicia saga. Who suffered in the end if not the workers? Regerettably 'beggars can't be choosers' although I hate the term. But it is the plain truth, giving the circumstances. And the sacrifice is not done only by the ST workers. The other tax payers are paying their share as ST is getting sizeable government subsidies in terms of operation costs. Hopefully they maintain the promise to invest more in advanced technology as they said they will shortly.
Let us really hope that other commercial entities would not adopt the same strategies. It is here where the government and the Unions should really cooperate in the defence of our standard of living.
And to MEA. Please revue your policies in employing foreigners. I am sure there are Maltese youngsters who are capable of working as bartenders, waiters, receptionists. Hope ETC is doing its homework well.
raphael stafrace
Jul 28th 2010, 11:17
there is nothing to be happy about on these disgusting situation the maltese workers have been put too.the maltese goverment and its workers have given st all that they have asked so they will continue their stay here in malta,lets hope that dont came with something else so they can quit shop here in malta.a comment made by a financial adviser wrote in the times saying(i dont know how by deducting 500000e from workers wages can help st when its annual turnover runs into millions
M Saliba
Jul 28th 2010, 11:17
The workers were voting under a threat, they were being told to 'do or die'. The general impression was that if workers voted no their livelihood was seriously at risk. Probably ST is able to find cheaper labour elsewhere. In this case it makes more sense that employees of multinational companies join together in an international workers' union in order to stop this bargaining for cheap labour.
ST workers being told: 'do or die'
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20100718/local/st-workers-being-told-do-or-die
c camilleri
Jul 28th 2010, 11:09
look at it from the bright side. if maltese income is reduced to the minimum possible, even less than minimum wage, we do not need all these immigrants working illegally in malta. they can sue us at the Human Rights court for not dressing them puma and addidas shirts and we maltese citizens pay on end.
Joseph Farrugia
Jul 28th 2010, 11:00
Jew barra tirregistraw jew taccettaw il-kundizzjonijiet. Nifirhu ghax il-haddiema accettaw li ma jmarrux jirregistraw. Ma Bkejtux issa tibku izjed ghada. Ga wahlu fikom jekk taghlaq. Il-Gvern perfett
charles zammit
Jul 28th 2010, 11:33
I agree with you joe, nobody is saying that the workers are paying from their pockets to safegaurd the st company from the damages that gonzipn applyed on the companies with his measures. Every body knows how many times the employers association critisised the electricity bills and the gases prices, how many times they critised gonzipn about them. Now Gonzi said its life or death its in your hands workes. Ma jridx issa Gonzipn jajat li hareg rebih u li rebah is-sens commun. Jien nejd prosit lil haddiema li ma waqajtux fin nasa, pero nejdilhom ftakru min gab lilkom hekk u lill kumpanija. Viva dawl u lillma
L Zammit
Jul 28th 2010, 10:51
Does this mean mangament also get a paid cut or their wages go up with inflation?
D.Galea
Jul 28th 2010, 10:51
Applaud devolution! This sets the trend of things to come. Thank you for making it more worth being unemployed.
Joe Borg
Jul 28th 2010, 10:47
nahseb Malta ghal gol hajt sejra - kollox jghola u working conditions xejn sew! salarji ta pajjiz fqir waqt li nixtru jkollox bi prezzijiet ghola min ta barra --
Stephen Koludrovic
Jul 28th 2010, 10:39
We can blame all this on Globalization.
D Vella
Jul 28th 2010, 10:34
Well they would,wouldn't they
k.mallia
Jul 28th 2010, 10:31
other Employers will surely follow !
im afraid its the end of all Workers unions....esp the ones representing
the Private sector & local largest companies
P.Zammit
Jul 28th 2010, 10:59
Are you serious, what are you calling for, an uprising of unemployed bullies?
What did you expect workers do, win the battle and loose the war? Was your job on the line or theirs?
We are no longer living in the era you long for. Today things work differently and nobody gains when salaries are increased or kept as they are for workers on the verge of loosing employment. What would have happened if they stood ground, maybe remain employed for the next 12 months, until the company took its local production function to the other MUCH cheaper countries?
We have to take a stand here. We either want manufacturing to remain or we want large pay packets. Both together are not compatible and hence why most textile companies have closed down and many former functions of ST have moved from more expensive countries like France to Malta (and will by time, move to cheaper places)
What has happened now, is we prolonged the demise of ST from Malta to a number of years in the future rather than a few months. When wages cannot keep up with the cost of living and demands made, ST will just go.
k.mallia
Jul 28th 2010, 11:06
@ P ZAMMIT....
ALL YOUR BLA BLA PARAGRAPH IN JUST 3 WORDS...
il haddiem gej ilsir !! next in line deduction of public holidays...wait and see...
P.Zammit
Jul 28th 2010, 11:29
Thank you for your adjectives.
Some lessons people never seem to learn:
Nobody owes you a living. You write here like there is somebody responsible to give you a job and pay you a handsome salary. In other countries the hire and fire scenario is a fact of life like breathing air.
No business entity or its shareholders will invest their money to give a job to you but rather for them to get a handsome return. They just need you in the process of doing just that. I am thankful that my employer does just that with me and if I do not like it, I either leave and open a business of my own or go on the dole.
Making demands when a company is either struggling or heavily thinking of move operations to other cheaper places is indeed a ticket to going on the dole.
You make your own life, your own future, what does not work for you in terms of work or salary, you leave and find better (in your opinion) places to work at.
No one is responsible for your skills enhancement, you-are!
Not nice, but welcome to reality, irrespective of Bla Bla Blas
Franco Farrugia
Jul 28th 2010, 10:23
Well, this glee is expected from the employers, no?
Carmelo Briffa
Jul 28th 2010, 10:22
Din l-staqarrija tal-MEA hija haga ovvja.Biss wisq nibza li l- azzjoni tal ST tigi ikkupjata min kumpanijji ohrajn ghad dannu tal haddiem.
Karmnu