Close to 100 shipyard workers have applied for the early retirement schemes in just over a week, as the government yesterday said it was prepared to fine-tune the dockyard package.
In the meantime, the Finance Ministry yesterday welcomed the General Workers' Union decision to backtrack from its "confrontational stance" and return to discussions.
"The government is prepared to hold discussions on how the early retirement schemes can be fine-tuned and will continue keeping the union informed about the privatisation process," a statement from the ministry said.
However, in a counter statement, the union said the government was attempting to impose its own agenda. The GWU said it would only attend meetings if all the issues were on the table, chief among which were job guarantees for those who opted to stay.
The union also accused government of an "arrogant, anti-democratic and dishonest attitude" since it had not put forward any concrete proposals for discussion. Instead, the GWU said the government was threatening workers that it would declare the 'yards bankrupt if they did not do as they were told.
The ministry insisted that the government had never closed the door to discussions. However, it continued, these needed to take place within the framework of a process which led to privatisation.
It also said the retirement schemes were voluntary and not a downsizing exercise, which would only take place if the new dockyard owner instituted compulsory redundancies.
The 1,627 shipyard workers are on an indefinite contract and are eligible to take up one of the four schemes that will be open until the end of October. Should all the workers apply, the schemes would cost the government €49 million.
The government's aim is to reduce the workforce to less than 700 and make it more attractive for prospective buyers.
When contacted by The Sunday Times, Finance Minister Tonio Fenech said he was "quite satisfied" with the number of applicants for the schemes, considering that the union was trying to discourage them.
He said around 60 per cent of the applicants were among workers under the age of 49.
Mr Fenech accepted that the early retirement process could mean that the docks end up with a skill imbalance, though he said this was a hypothetical issue at this stage.
"It will have to be answered when the schemes are closed and we have a better picture of who has opted to stay on and what the skill-base is," he said.
Mr Fenech said the government will "obviously" be giving the details of the skill-base available on the books to whoever is going to buy the docks.
"Ideally there will be a good mix, but it is not fair at this stage of the proceedings and with an ongoing privatisation process to impose who should remain and who should not."
Mr Fenech underlined the importance of having a peaceful transition and to focus on trying to sell the shipyards rather than having public protests and discouraging people from expressing an interest.
"This is a sensitive process and there are a lot of conditions to enable it to take place. You are talking to people who will be investing millions, so they will come with their own terms and conditions. We need to make sure that we can sell a shipyard that can be viable."
He said only a successful privatisation can guarantee any hope for a positive future for those workers who opt to remain with the shipyards.
Azzjoni Nazzjonali yesterday said in a statement that although the ship-repair industry had changed since the 'yard's "glory days" in the 1960s, it believed that if the docks' skills were properly harnessed, the enterprise could move forward, using efficient and modern work systems and business strategies.