Children with intellectual disabilities who attend the government’s therapy unit will not be assessed by psychologists who are taking industrial action.

The industrial action, which started yesterday, also means that adult patients using government health services, schoolchildren and prison inmates will not have access to psychologists.

Instead of assessments, psychologists will dedicate their time with clients to psychotherapy, interventions and psycho-educational sessions.

“These directives are aimed at affecting the operational side of the work while trying to minimise the impact on clients,” Bernard Caruana, president of the Malta Union of Professional Psychologists said.

He said the directives were issued to members who worked in the government’s home affairs, health and education divisions in reaction to infringements of their sectoral agreement.

The union had registered an industrial dispute in March, accusing the government, which employs about 22 psychologists, of dragging its feet on the revision of the 1996 sectoral agreement.

It claimed that the three government ministries employing psychologists – health, home affairs and education – were not respecting the agreement. Some psychologists were being employed on short-term definite contracts leading to job uncertainty, the union says.

“It is imperative for everyone to understand these actions are not being resorted to frivolously but after repeatedly trying to negotiate. Unfortunately, this seems to be the only language the government understands and so we must speak the language it understands,” he said.

A spokesman for the Finance Ministry said a conciliatory meeting was scheduled for tomorrow.