Charlon Gouder, a former Labour Party reporter turned lawyer, is refusing to explain his role in a contract to import some 350 workers from Nepal on cheap labour conditions.

Gouder put his signature to a contract in 2017, seen by The Shift, between local human resources supplier Ozo Group and a Nepalese employment agency for some 350 workers to be flown into Malta for different jobs. The Maltese company is involved in a number of government contracts and direct orders.

The Nepalese workers, who had to stay in the country for a minimum of two years, were to be paid very low wages hovering around the minimum wage, while Ozo Group was responsible for their flights, accommodation and the daily provision of meals during their eight-hour shifts.

According to the contract – for the ‘importation’ of a total of 350 people to work as waiters, housekeepers, kitchen helpers, cleaners, painters and accounts clerks – those sent to Malta and found to have medical conditions would be immediately flown back to Nepal at the foreign agent’s expense.

Importantly, Ozo Group also bound itself to secure all the visas necessary for each Nepalese worker. It is Identity Malta that issues such visas. This heavily bureaucratic process requires proper contacts and the pulling of strings within the right channels for visas to be expedited to line up with the arrival of the workers.

Apart from the signature of Ozo Group chairman Mario Muscat, the contract also, somewhat oddly, includes the signature and lawyer’s stamp of Charlon Gouder.

It was independent political candidate Arnold Cassola who first raised questions over the role of the Labour propagandist in the importation of cheap labour. Yet Gouder failed to react.

It was independent political candidate Arnold Cassola who first questioned Gouder

Asked directly by The Shift to explain his role, Gouder, at first, completely denied his involvement.

However, when The Shift showed him a copy of the contract, Gouder said: “I categorically deny that I am, or have ever been, a second party to any agreement for the importation of workers from Nepal.  Anything, including agreements, showing otherwise, as indicated in your assertions, are false.”

A section of the contract for the importation of cheap labour from Nepal signed by Charlon Gouder

Pressed to explain his role and to state whether the signature on the contract was his, Gouder went silent.

The Shift is informed that at the time of the contract’s signing, Gouder was also serving as a government consultant, in addition to various other roles he was given since the Labour Party was returned to power.

He also serves as the chief lobbyist of the private multi-million-euro controversial tuna ranching industry. He is one of the lawyers filing appeals on behalf of the government to deny Freedom of Information requests.

The Ozo Group, co-owned by the Zammit Tabona family, which also owns the Fortina Group, declined to comment, citing “private company matters”.

Based in Qormi, the Ozo Group is one of the many Maltese agencies and intermediaries that have specialised in the newfound sector of importing cheap foreign labour.

Mario Muscat next to Michelle Muscat and Edward Zammit Tabona promoting their sponsorship of The Marigold Foundation.

The government itself has become a main player in this ‘cheap labour’ economy, employing as it does thousands of such workers through these agents in many job descriptions – from cleaners to receptionists and from nurses and carers to waste collectors.

Agents such as the Ozo Group rack up earnings by making a profit on everyone they hire to private and public companies while keeping their employees on low wages.

According to an Ozo Group contract, a Nepalese housekeeper, cleaner or kitchen helper in 2017 was paid a total of €735 a month, exactly the same as the minimum wage. The workers were also given free accommodation and food.

Confirming the trend, industry sources told The Shift that in other cases, ‘imported’ employees are being paid slightly more but would also have accommodation expenses to foot, meaning many such workers end up sharing small living quarters with ten or more other workers.

It is estimated that in Malta, there are currently tens of thousands of these workers, with many being engaged irregularly and open to blatant abuse.

The sources said that apart from creating ‘artificial demand’ in terms of housing and construction, importing cheap labour still helps businesses keep their payroll costs low while increasing their profit margins.