Be wary of those who always want to destroy the GWU, be proud of the past and renew the union according to the changing times, outgoing General Secretary Tony Zarb advised the new leadership this morning.

Mr Zarb was speaking at the biannual national conference, being held this morning in Valletta, which will also see Josef Bugeja give his first speech as General Secretary.

Mr Zarb thanked several people from the union that inspired him to lead the union for 16 years, and especially his family, who stood by him at the most difficult times.

He warned his successors that without the GWU, the Maltese and Gozitan workers would be orphaned.

"We managed to survive under a hostile government. I was attacked and was told I had a militant attitude.

"To those who insulted me I tell them: You honoured me whenever you insulted me. I want to assure those who tried to harm me that I did not retaliate in the same manner," he said.

Mr Zarb however noted that he could not forgive those who attacked his family, especially those anonymous people who sent letters to his mum, telling her they would kill her son.

Urging those present to be proud of the past and strong in the future, Mr Zarb concluded his speech to loud cheers as he said that workers, pensioners and their families would always come first and foremost (l-ewwel u qabel kollox).

The conference was opened by GWU president Victor Carachi, who spoke of migration, which he said, became a European issue when middle eastern refugees found a route to central Europe. Before that, southern European states were rescuing and giving refuge to migrants on their own.

Next to take the podium, Opposition leader Simon Busuttil commended the union for participating in events following the accession into the EU, despite initially taking a stand against. Cooperation, he said, was important in a democracy, even at times of disagreement.

In his address, Dr Busuttil said that his priorities were no different from the union's: "I believe that the economy is there for the people, and the generated wealth should be distributed equally. The principles of social justice are important for me."

The PN leader insisted that since the economy was doing well, one would have expected a higher rate of increase in the average wages.

He also spoke about poverty. There are 100,000 people at risk of poverty, and this meant that the generated wealth was not being distributed justly.

"I think that even if we have not always agreed, these are issues we should discuss, and I believe these are issues that we can all agree on. We can overcome these challenges together."

LOUD CHEERS FOR THE PRIME MINISTER

Speaking at the same conference, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat was loudly cheered as he went on stage.

Dr Muscat spoke of how the union had influenced the country's agenda along the years. Among others, the GWU had been at the forefront to voice complaints about utility bills. The GWU had kicked off a discussion, and subsequently, the government launched its plan to decrease the bills by 25 per cent.

The Prime Minister also referred to recent calls to further decrease these bills. He insisted that fuel prices kept fluctuating, and if bills were changed accordingly, there would not be any stability for families.

In his address, Dr Muscat commended the GWU for being the first to speak of precarious work, noting that among other initiatives, the government had introduced a system that black listed employers who engaged workers precariously.

On a similar vein, he said the union was also the first to speak about the inclusion of migrants within the labour market. Dr Muscat referred to migrants picked up from Marsa for a day's work as a 'slave market', where people were being deprived of their rights and dignity. They were paid a few euros, if any at all, also to the detriment of Maltese workers, who were not being employed as it was more financially feasible to engage migrants.

"Tackling this issue will not be easy, as there will people who will try to sow doubts... They do not realise that if we allow a slave market, we are undermining the rights of all workers," he said, urging all unions to come together to deal with this problem.

The Prime Minister also called on the GWU and the UHM to turn over a new leaf. They could not remain slaves of the past and continue arguing about issues such as recognition, he said, adding it

was time for inclusive agreement and as the largest union, the GWU was obliged to enter into a discussion.

Earlier, Dr Muscat spoke of the union's cooperation during the hot discussions about the restructuring of Enemalta.

He also expressed concern that unions were not geared enough to tackle women's rights at work, including flexibility and harassment issues.