The four employer-constituted bodies have reiterated their opposition to obligatory trade union membership, as suggested by government.
The Malta Employers Association, the Malta Chamber, the Small and Medium Enterprises Association and the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association were replying to Parliamentary Secretary Andy Ellul.
The constituted bodies said that membership or non-membership of a trade union is an individual choice and cannot be forced by the government, employers, or trade unions.
This is a fundamental principle enshrined in the Constitution of Malta, as well as in international treaties such as the United Nations and European documents.
The four bodies denied they had had negotiations on this subject, despite what Ellul hinted in a recent interview.
Different types of wage theft:
1. Doctoring your work times. Like already doing your 40 hours per week but the manager tells you, ‘Don’t go over but you still have to finish some other work.’ What does this mean? Overtime not being paid while using unrealistic quotas, set up by management higher up.
2. Don’t clock in until something in particular happens. Like we have a 30 minute meeting to decide what to do throughout the day, or putting work clothes/PPE, etc.
3. Tip stealing. Basically, your employer takes a share of your tips.
4. Working of the clock. Basically, you’re working voluntary work and it’s not being clocked or reported.
5. Money or benefits owed are not present on your payslip. Usually used on 3rd country nationals or workers with low or on minimum wage.
6. Unexplained deductions for food allowance, transport allowance or telephone usage.
7. The company goes under and/or bankrupt and the last months are not paid.
8. Training time is not paid. You are working on learning a company’s systems and way to do things and it’s not paid at all, not even minimum wage.
9. Employee quits or resigns, and they are not paid for the last few days or weeks, also benefits owed are ignored.
10. Misclassification of employment contract to avoid benefits. Like saying the employee is self employed or part time, instead of a full time employee.
11. Paying under the table, hence employee isn’t eligible for most benefits.
12. Asking or pressuring employees to work through their break periods.
This stealing happens little by little to everyone. On one payslip the difference is negligible, but over a year and on many employees, it accumulates. Furthermore, people who are in a more precarious situation, like working on a visa, irregular/not properly documented people, 3rd country nationals, pregnant women, people with different needs, people with kids, loans or living from paycheck to paycheck, are usually the ones that have a harder time talking to the correct people that can help or advise.
I personally don’t believe in unions. But these and more, are the kind of ‘issues’ that usually employees are not empowered, to confront their employer about. And if they confront, they sometimes feel that they may be punished or marginalized.
So I ask the bodies, of the Malta Employers Association, the Malta Chamber, the Small and Medium Enterprises Association, and the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association and also Andy Ellul:
Does an employee have to resort to using a lawyer, with all the costs that it entails?
Should the government and its law enforcement mechanisms, like the police, or other institutions like Jobs Plus intervene?
Or a union’s collective bargaining power?
Or should I trust an employer’s goodwill, and ability not to break the law?
It is curious how all the pro employer groups have decided that employees automatically all being unionised is against employees rights.
The only reason to be against such a proposal is because the employers are going to have to stop abusing of their employee’s rights.
There is practically no employee protection in Malta, if the employee is bullied or harassed and they speak to HR, they may find themselves out of a job. The culture of fear. An employee can only hire a lawyer and go to the employment Tribunal and spend years undergoing a mini court case.
Given the abuses that are going on in terms of employment in Malta, it’s a good idea to have all employees join a union, without fear of retribution. As it stands, no one really protects the employee as such.