Updated - Adds FORUM reaction to government rules
The problem of precarious work is being blown out of proportion by unions representing workers, according to Malta Employers’ Association President Arthur Muscat.
“We will prove this with facts that show that the situation in Malta is relatively contained… MEA is against the campaign by the unions in which they are considering part-time work, definite contracts and self-employment as precarious,” he said as he launched the MEAs position paper on precarious employment this morning.
He said that the MEA did not agree with the drawing up of new laws to tackle precarious employment. Various laws were already in place. The main problem was enforcement.
Entitled Position Paper on Illegal and Atypical Employment Practices, the paper starts off by stating that there is no definition to precarious employment.
Malta has one of the lowest rates of part-time workers at 14 per cent compared to the EU average of 22 per cent. Similarly the rate of definite period employment stood at 6 per cent last year when the EU average was of 14 per cent. Self-employment stood at 13 per cent when the EU average was of 15 per cent. In the majority of cases the mode of employment was the workers’ choice.
The paper points out the distinction between illegal and unethical practices. Illegal employment means that a law was broken when, for example, an employee was paid below the minimum wage or not allowed to affiliate with a union.
Unethical employment meant no laws were broken but the situation was borderline.
In the paper the MEA makes various recommendations to Government that include setting minimum hourly rates when issuing tenders. It welcomed the new conditions against precarious employment launched yesterday. Government should also increase enforcement. At the Labour Office there were about nine enforcement officers, the Paper notes.
Unions should be more vigilant and report illegalities while employers should be aware of legal rights and obligations and promote ethical work practices.
FORUM SAYS NEW RULES NOT ENOUGH
Meanwhile, the FORUM group of trade unions said the new contract conditions issued yesterday by the government were good, but did not go far enough.
It said there could still be abuses of the workers since irregular work contracts would remain in force and since these workers could be summarily dismissed without disciplinary proceedings.
It augured that the dialogue with the government on this subject would be continued.