Shop owners fail to get concession to open on St Paul's feast day
The GRTU said this afternoon that shop owners' hopes of being able to open on February 10 (The feast of St Paul's Shipwreck) have been 'destroyed by bureaucracy'.
"Following last year's controversy on the opening of shops on public holidays that fall close to special occasions which are deemed to be very important shopping days, where the GRTU strongly advocated for the outlets to be given the opportunity to open without the legal obligation to pay €700 euros per shop, there seemed to be an agreed commitment by Government that during 2012 the issue would have been managed over a whole year basis," the GRTU said.
The GRTU said it had therefore presented its request, which is viewed as a simple formality as bureaucrats also have access to calendars.It had been informed, however, that in spite of last year's commitment, the government had still failed to decided in time to allow shops to open on February 10.
It said this was an important shopping day in view of Valentines Day.
"The GRTU therefore regretfully informs all shops who had planned to open on 10th February that they may have to incur the extra charge if they are not already exempt as Government has refused GRTU's request on behalf of all retailers who wished to open."
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31 Comments
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John Scerri
Feb 7th, 10:09
LIVE ...........AND LET LIVE............. I SAY.
HERE IT IS LIVE ...........AND LET DIE !
Carmel Cilia
Feb 7th, 09:00
Kien hemm zunzan li qalli -Heqq ghal min ma jafx San Pawl tal-Belt f'Malta ghanda rabta politika kif ghandu wkoll San Duminku tal Belt. Pajjiz li ghadna nghixu fl-anqbut tal-passat. Illum bin nisa jahdmu hanut li jiftaqh fil-Hdud u il-festi tghidx kemm hu apprezzat izda hawn sforatunatament ghad ghandna mazra kbira mdendla ma ghonqna -ir- religjon kattolika rumana.
M Grima
Feb 7th, 08:53
Serves you right GRTU for lobbying with the government so that LIDL supermarkets would not open on Good Friday. Or is it a case of two weights and two measures? I cannot understand why the members of this so called union even bother to pay for their membership for being affiliated to a union which is more interested in politics rather than giving some form of service to its members.
John L Galea
Feb 7th, 08:39
Dictatorship at its best
Tony Dalli
Feb 7th, 07:00
Who is behind these atrocities - surely a die heart conservative? A shop owner can never afford to pay a Euro700 fine just to open a couple of days.
Who stand to loose - the economy. Perhaps I am asking too much - let’s be realistic - today a normal business day should be 25 hours and not shortened by some - good for nothing back office conservative bureaucrat. If the Government or its agencies do not give in to this request they are as good as the man sitting behind the desk thinking on his/her next unmerited holiday.
rose dunphy
Feb 7th, 02:18
correct me if i am wrong. my grandmother owned a grocery store in hamrun in the 1950's and i was always there helping. it was opened on sundays till noon. i would like to know when the law changed that stores cannot open on sundays or holidays in malta. after all now there is also divorce which i never thought i would see in malta
Chris Xuereb
Feb 6th, 21:53
They should be allowed to open, the important thing is that the employees interests and rights are safe guarded. If they're happy to work overtime, so be it. On the otherhand, feast or no feast the businessman still has to pay the rent on the premesis of the public holiday/ holidays in question!
Mr Ernest Vella
Feb 6th, 21:42
infakkar biss li l-Knisja taghmel obbligu biss ghal quddies ghal San Pawl, u tista tahdem...ma nistax nifhem ghaliex ma jistghux jifthu. Halluhom jifthu...fi zmien ta ricessjoni mhux zmien nimxu bil-hmerijiet tal-burokrazija...u min ma jridx jiftah jibqa maghluq.
David Hill
Feb 6th, 21:08
Let's just hope that there are no cruise liners in on that day.
It would make their holiday, having their one day in Malta spoiled by the place being closed.
A. Mifsud
Feb 6th, 21:05
This is getting ridiculous. I mean why should anybody be forbidden to open on a public holiday, or on a Sunday? What sort of free market is this if we apply back dated laws! The authorities responsibility is that they ensure that there is no abuse in the system. ie that employees get what they are entitled to in the form of overtime pay and that the state gets the revenue through taxation that the business will generate on the day. Why so much red tape? Consumers can only benefit from increased economic activity. Its ultimately a win- win - win- win situation to all stakeholders (entrapreneurs employees consumer and state).
Chris Grillo
Feb 6th, 20:53
Dawn l-istess GRTU li ma riedux il LIDL jiftah fil gimga l kbira? Kieku taf kemm kellna bzonn supermarket ghall incident li nqalalna.
Nibqa ninsisti.... GRTU tezistu ghax hawn l-ispazju.... Hasra li qed tisirqu l flus minn halq in negozjanti genwini!
DEFICJENTI .....
Lawrence Camilleri
Feb 6th, 22:46
Il-Gimgha l-Kbira hija hag'ohra Sur Grillo, totalment differenti mill-Festa ta San Pawl u li tahbat vicin Valentine's Day. Qed thallat il-hass mal-b.ss..
W Cassar
Feb 7th, 11:35
@ Lawrence
You are looking at it from a religious point of view, that is the problem ... I disagree with you!
W Cassar
Feb 6th, 20:45
So its ok for your members to open on a feast but not Lidl.
Martin Cassar
Feb 6th, 20:06
A business man like St Paul will certainly be happy to see people earning some extra euros giving the fact that the sinking economies are biting hard!
Kevin Grech
Feb 6th, 18:59
retail law in Malta needs to be rewritten. The current law was originally written in 1939 and is outdated. Today we have a situation whereby if the owner wants to open, the employees are happy to work and get paid double, and the consumer ready to shop but the Government thinks otherwise. the Government is supposed to represent the people!
Martin Saliba
Feb 6th, 19:57
the Government is supposed to represent the people!
Just as it did during the divorce debate , the referendum and the parliament vote .
Martin Saliba
Feb 6th, 18:20
Serves you right , what goes around comes around. Remember Lidl on good friday ?
Joseph Calleja
Feb 6th, 19:10
L-ixkubetta fija il-grillu, u kulhadd jghamel kif jghaqbillu.
Joseph E Briffa
Feb 6th, 18:19
Shopowners should be left free to decide whether to open or not. If they employ salespersons these should be paid overtime rates accorfing to law. Why not be practical instead of making an issue out of everything?
Joseph Bonnici
Feb 6th, 18:10
Is this the same GRTU which was against a supermarket that a few months back wanted to open on a feast day? Two weights and two measures or is this a “U” turn since these shops are members of the GRTU while perhaps the supermarket was not a member? Makes one wonder how the wind vane turns as the wind blows!
Mr Edwin Vella
Feb 6th, 17:52
Jekk nibqghu sejrin hekk bhal zmien ir-rumani ha nigu. Dawk f'Jannar u Frar kienu jghalqu n-negozji u lanqas is-swieq ma kienu jarmaw. Ahna hawn Malta f' Jannar u Frar nifthu ghal xejn jew biex nitilfu.
Joe Scerri
Feb 6th, 17:52
Personally I don't care when shops open, but is not this the same GRTU that a few years ago had raised a lot of fuss about supermarkets opening on Sundays ? Or is it two weights and two measures as usual?
Peter Murray
Feb 6th, 17:45
Yet markets are given permission to open on Christmas Day!
Joseph Calleja
Feb 6th, 17:29
Why not let the concession owners decide if they want to open or not? Why are we still under the archaic laws of dictatorship? When is the government going to start minding it's affairs instead of others .Is this the Church ruling or the government which are one and the same?
Andreas Moser
Feb 6th, 17:22
I'll open MY shop on any day I want.
Joseph Calleja
Feb 6th, 17:30
Not in Malta you don't.
Peter Murray
Feb 6th, 17:46
Try Christmas Day Andreas.
Daniel Gauci
Feb 6th, 17:57
Good for you man, I will be there to shop :)
Do eating establishments have to close? If not then there is no difference and all should be able to open.
Peter Murray
Feb 6th, 19:08
Dear Daniel,
Please make like-for-like comparisons and you appear to have the must-shop-until-you-drop syndrome.It is possible to go without food or eating out on public holidays but is eating every day not recommended for one's health as opposed to shopping everyday and ,leaving out chemists,for what absolute essentials that you don't already have or cannot buy in advance exactly ?
m farrugia
Feb 6th, 17:15
mela issa mhux qed tiskandallizzaw ruhkom ghax ha jiftah il lidl fil gimgha il kbira, tal grtu