Air Malta’s four trade unions will for the first time tomorrow hold a joint meeting with management that will be chaired by President Emeritus George Abela.

The former president was asked by the government to co-chair a committee tasked with negotiating expired collective agreements as the airline braces itself for part-privatisation. Air Malta chairwoman Maria Micallef will be the other co-chair.

Dr Abela yesterday told the Times of Malta his role on the committee was to facilitate negotiations between management and the unions while keeping the bigger picture in mind.

“I will not be a mediator but a facilitator… our remit is to negotiate the collective agreements but they cannot be taken in isolation,” Dr Abela said.

The former president said he was not involved in the commercial negotiations the government was undertaking separately with a strategic partner.

I will not be a mediator but a facilitator...our remit is to negotiate the collective agreements, but they cannot be taken in isolation

The government wants to retain majority shareholding but is expected to sell a substantial stake to an undisclosed airline.

Sources have said talks were under way with Etihad Airways of the United Arab Emirates and the move was likely to lead to a reduction in employees and changes in work practices.

A restructuring process started in 2010 and approved by Brussels will end in March but Air Malta has failed to become profitable as planned.

Dr Abela said the committee would listen to the unions and the management and reach an agreement that will safeguard the long-term survival of the airline.

“There are at times conflicting interests but there are also common concerns. It will require a collective effort to find a common approach and this will mean that some sectoral interests will have to be given up,” Dr Abela said.

It was The Sunday Times of Malta that revealed Dr Abela’s engagement as a facilitator, which caught unions by surprise.

Representatives of the General Workers’ Union, the Airline Pilots Association and the Union of Cabin Crew yesterday said they got to know of Dr Abela’s involvement from the newspaper. GWU general secretary Josef Bugeja said the meeting was about Air Malta’s future but no agenda was communicated.

“As long as we are not faced with a fait accompli, we have no problem who the person is,” Mr Bugeja said.

Dominic Azzopardi, president of the pilots’ association, said that no agenda was communicated to his union.

“We were informed of the joint meeting by the ministry… You probably know more than us, because we were not even aware George Abela was involved,” Mr Azzopardi said.

Noel Mercieca from the Union of Cabin Crew lamented that workers had been left in the dark for far too long.

“There is a lot of uncertainty. We will wait for the meeting and see what comes out of it.”

The Association of Airline Engineers could not be reached.

kurt.sansone@timesofmalta.com

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