Scores of jobless scheme workers assigned to Gozo local councils, parliament told

The government’s jobless scheme has sent scores of workers to placements with Gozitan local councils, many of which are responsible for no more than a few hundred residents, new data revealed in parliament has shown.

Additional information tabled in parliament following questions by PN MP Joseph Ellis shows that while Maltese local councils were mostly assigned a couple of workers each from the Community Workers Scheme (CWS), Gozo councils, normally smaller in size, both in territory and households, have been given significantly more ‘helpers’ through the programme.

The Zebbug local council, one of the smallest in the whole country, population-wise, has been assigned as many as 15 community workers, while concurrently, a further five have been engaged at the locality’s primary school, with yet another employed to take care of the locality’s rarely used shooting range.

Other Gozitan local councils have also been boosted by the influx of community workers, including nine at the Xaghra local council, four at the Sannat Local Council and another four assigned to the locality’s football club, 10 at the Qala local council, five each for Nadur and Munxar and six for Kercem.

According to parliamentary figures, the scheme, which started with 600 workers in 2014 has now almost doubled to 1,091 participants, all put on a state-funded wage as part of a supposedly ‘training’ initiative.

Thirty per cent of all participants hail from Gozo where the CWS has proved to be an effective ‘avenue’ for many to be given government jobs without needing to go through the normal recruitment channels.

Apart from local councils, the scheme’s workers are also assigned to carry out mostly maintenance jobs at public schools and NGOs.

Once again, Gozitan organisations are among those assigned most participants, with the Gozo Football Association topping the list, with 15 full time workers assigned to it.

The CWS was intended to provide training to the long-term unemployed in order to assist them to eventually find a ‘proper’ job in the private sector and move on. However, despite the intention for the scheme to be phased out once the 600 participants had left, instead the programme has expanded.

Having assigned the management of the scheme to its former political partner, the General Workers Union, the Labour government appears to have transformed it into a new government-jobs recruitment agency.

Surveillance of participants on the job is considered very low, especially in Gozo, leading to allegations that many of the participants spend only a few hours on their ‘official’ jobs, while carrying on with their private activities elsewhere.

This scheme is costing taxpayers some €15 million a year including hundreds of thousands in management fees charged by the GWU.

Last June a new government call was issued for an eight-year management contract of the scheme, valued at €113 million. The evaluation by the contracts department is still ongoing.

                           

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6 Comments
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David
David
3 years ago

Not a job once can grow in! How depressing…

saviour mamo
saviour mamo
3 years ago

Is this government’s jobless scheme a modern version of the il- Korp tal-pijunieri , tad-DIM, Izra u Rabbi u Ilghaq u A’sal?

Mick Quinn
Mick Quinn
3 years ago

Just another day in Mafialand, how many more, as soon as I saw the mention of the GWU, hysterical laughter brought me to tears. I don’t know how many real sensible people read this but it’s way past time to visit parliament and ask them ALL to re-apply for their jobs subject to interview. It’s time to go down there and call them all out, or it is NEVER going to finish. Forget the opposition they don’t have a clue this needs people power yet again, it’s the only way!

Henry s Pace
Henry s Pace
3 years ago

‘ Scores of jobless scheme workers ‘While these jobless workers are registered to this scheme they just appear for a few minutes at their place of work assigned to them and off they go to do their private work

Marija
Marija
3 years ago

Instead of paying these employees for doing nothing, why don’t they serve their purpose and clean MALTA. By far, Gozo is cleaner than Malta and surely does not need all those useless persons paid from our taxes. Volunteeers are ending up doing the cleaning out of their free will instead so that these employees can have it easy! Those who truly have MALTA at heart have had enough of the dirt everywhere!

Godfrey Leone Ganado
Godfrey Leone Ganado
3 years ago

This is how our GDP grows as wages to government employees, are one of the main contributors to the GDP. While doing so, our National Statistics get a boost as well, through an addition to persons in employment, and a decrease in unemployed numbers.
Unfortunately, the educational level of the majority of voters, is so low, that the Government can feed them cow dung and they will thank it, idolise it, and re-vote for it.

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