The Malta Union of Teachers has directed teachers to observe a work to rule from Monday after a lack of progress at a meeting with the government yesterday.

The union is seeking an addendum to a collective agreement it signed in 2007, insisting that teachers' allowances needed to be increased. It has protested that while, in 2007, it was told that the allowances couldn't be improved, the government had secretly at the same time negotiated such increases for other professions.

The MUT council in a statement this evening said it was disappointed that the government had not offered any remedy to the injustice which the teachers had suffered since 2007. In yesterday's meeting, the government had simply proposed an alignment with the other professions, which could only take place after six months of study and talks with the other unions.

The MUT said it agreed with alignment in principle, and it was this which was blatantly ignored in 2007. However the teachers could not be expected to continue to wait for justice any more.

Unfortunately, the union, said, the governemnt had refused proposals for an interim solution and it, therefore, had no alternative but to order all the teaching grades to work to rule. It also alterted its members to further directives, even during exams.