Updated 4.30pm with GWU reaction
The Malta Employers Association has proposed the introduction of a ‘waiting day’ where the first day of sick leave would be unpaid, as a means to discourage abuse.
“Many companies are concerned about the increased incidence of sick leave – in particular, sporadic sick leave linked to weekends. As happens in other countries, the first day of sick leave should be unpaid and treated as a waiting day,” the association says in Budget proposals handed to the government.
The association also insisted that any decision to add public holidays falling on weekends to optional leave should be balanced out with compensatory measures which should be discussed with employer bodies prior to implementation.
Between 2018 and 2022, there will be a total of 19 public holidays falling on weekends.
“Pre-electoral promises that affect employers have to be preceded by an impact assessment on costs and competitiveness on Malta’s enterprises,” the association said.
“Even if the full cost of such measures – paternity leave, public holidays on weekends etc. – is paid by the government, there would still be a cost incurred by employers which will have to be factored in any package that might be agreed upon by the social partners. For example, it is easy to compare family friendly measures with those of Scandinavian countries, but there also has to be a comparison of the total amount of leave days and public holidays, and the fact that some countries have an unpaid waiting day for sick leave besides systems to curb abusive practices by employees,” the association said.
Exodus of private sector workers
The association observed that in the first half of this year, employers in the private sector suffered an exodus of employees from their companies to work in the public sector, often to be replaced with foreign workers. Gozo was particularly affected by this phenomenon, but many companies in Malta faced a similar situation. The government, it said, should make every effort to streamline its operations to free human resources to productive jobs in the private sector, possibly through natural wastage, and there should be a level playing field in the labour market between the public and the private sector.
Call for uniform energy rates for domestic, commercial users
Among other proposals, the MEA called for a move towards uniform energy tariffs for domestic and commercial users.
“Commercial rates of energy in Malta are higher than domestic rates, and are also higher than the EU average. This effectively means that businesses have, for decades, been subsidising domestic energy rates,” the MEA said.
“ With the current international prices of fuel, combined with the benefits of having the interconnector and the gas power station, it is being proposed to streamline these divergent rates over a five year period to have a uniform rate of energy in Malta. In many EU member countries the commercial/ industrial rates are in fact the same as domestic rates.” It, however, also called for night tariffs for businesses.
Concern over legalised Marijuana
The association said employers are concerned about the effect of legalising marijuana on the workplace, and should the legalisation come to pass, expect tangible measures to protect the workplace.
“Smoking marijuana on the job is unacceptable behaviour even if the substance were to be legalised. As with other serious offences, it should be a cause for instant dismissal,” it said.
Employers should have the right to conduct random drug tests to establish whether they have smoked at the workplace and also to determine whether they are under the influence.
GWU objects strongly
The General Workers’ Union has objected strongly to the proposal, saying it would turn back time to a period when workers were exploited and abused.
It said that if the MEA had any concerns about the implementation of sick leave, it should address them directly.
It said that the 1969 recommendations of the International Labour Office on medical care and sickness benefits relate to any “sickness” while the OECD defines it as any situation where a person is not in a fit mental or physical state to go to work.
See our poll question - Should the first day of sick leave be unpaid, to deter abuse?