The General Workers’ Union is refusing to explain the relationship between a foundation it set up to administer a multi-million government jobless scheme and District Operations Ltd – a new commercial company it set up in the same days as the foundation and operating from the same offices in Ħamrun.
While the GWU confirmed that there were no employees on the Community Workers Scheme Enterprise Foundation’s books to administer the scheme, the Times of Malta is informed that the work is being carried out by District Operations Ltd – owned by the GWU and two of the foundation’s governors.
Internal Education Ministry documents seen by this newspaper show a top official instructing entities falling within the ministry to communicate directly with District Operations Ltd on anything related to the community workers.
Asked to explain the relationship between the foundation and District Operations Ltd, the GWU refused to reply.
“The questions relate to private commercial matters on which we decline to comment,” the GWU’s spokesman said.
The Times of Malta asked the union how much rent was being paid for the foundation’s office in Ħamrun and whether the union was passing income from the foundation to District Operations Ltd.
A spokeswoman for Education Minister Evarist Bartolo, responsible for the Jobs Plus scheme, did not reply to questions about the ministry’s relationship with District Operations Ltd.
The questions relate to private commercial matters
Although the Jobs Plus contract for the administration of this scheme was signed between the government and the GWU’s foundation, the ministry has instructed its officials and entities to communicate with Kenneth Cutajar, the general manager of District Operations Ltd.
According to the MFSA register, District Operations Ltd’s board of directors is the same as the board of governors of the foundation. These include the president and the general secretary of the GWU.
The shareholders of District Operations Ltd are GWU Holdings Ltd and District One Ltd whose two shareholders are GWU financial controller Robert Borg, and the union’s legal advisor Aaron Mifsud Bonnici, in their personal capacity. Both are also on the board of governors of the GWU foundation.
Yesterday, Mr Borg said the foundation was operating from his private property as he was renting those premises to his employer, the GWU.
Last weekend, The Sunday Times of Malta reported that, through the jobless scheme, the GWU was receiving €980 a month for every one of the 600 people it was employing. The employees are given work with local councils, the Education Ministry and NGOs and paid the minimum wage.
When asked to state how much profit the foundation was making through this scheme, the GWU said that the foundation was not making any profit.
However, it did not reply when asked whether any of the foundation’s income was being diverted to the commercial company operating from the same offices.
“This information is related to the commercial administration of limited liability companies,” was the spokesman’s only reply.