Shipyard workers employed by a contractor yesterday insisted they did not want to be dragged into a dispute between their company and Palumbo Shipyards.
But, although employed by Petronav, a shipyard subcontractor, the workers’ signed declaration was circulated by Palumbo Shipyards’ legal office yesterday.
In the declaration, the workers said they had received their salaries regularly and did not want to be involved in any dispute that might exist between their employer and Palumbo.
The declaration came after the General Workers’ Union said on Thursday that Petronav had not paid its employees their November wages after Palumbo did not pay the company for subcontracting works. Palumbo had denied the allegation.
In a second statement accompanying the workers’ declaration yesterday, Palumbo regretted the actions of “Petronav and others”, with clear reference to the GWU.
Palumbo said the statements tried to cast it in a bad light by blaming it for Petronav’s failure to pay its workers.
“Now, the workers themselves have declared that this was untrue and they did not wish to be drawn into any disputes that they are not part of. Palumbo feels that this statement shows that it was targeted unfairly by Petronav and called upon the company to honour its obligations,” Palumbo said.
Sources told Times of Malta the November wages were initially withheld before being paid in full by Petronav.
The sources said workers ended up at the centre of a commercial dispute between the two companies but had now secured a job for the next six months on ship repairs under way at the Palumbo shipyard.