Collective agreement at Union Press

Workers at GWU still waiting for pay rise

The new collective agreement for Union Press workers is still in the balance with no agreement yet reached between the workers’ committee, UPEC, and the management.

The Union Press is the printing arm of the General Workers’ Union. It is understood that a Lm3 a week pay increase has been on UPEC’s agenda since the beginning of the talks but the management is set against this request.

Several workers from the printing press department told MaltaToday that the management had made a number of conditions and was ready to give a ‘take it or leave it’ Lm2 increase.

Among other things the conditions include the abolition of summer half days for those who work as day workers. These include the advertising department, features department and other workers which are on clerical duties. Another measure proposed by the management is for the numerous sections of the Union Press to start working on shift to reduce overtime expenses. One of the proposals is working four days a week but with a day of 10 hours instead of the usual eight.

Most of the workers are contesting this decision as they believe that this goes against the law and it is only if the majority of the workers agree to such a new shift that the union can impose such measures. In fact there are workers who have already talked to lawyers about such a scenario.

The wages at the Union Press have not been revised for seven years because a wage freeze on the collective agreement was imposed. The last wage increase that they received was in the Anglu Fenech era.

Under the next secretary general Jackie Calamatta, the workers received no pay increases.

Because of the current deadlock, the majority of the workers’ morale has plummeted and many are voicing criticism that that the GWU is militant on behalf of its members but is now letting down its staff.

Meanwhile former housing minister Alfred Portelli, who works as a clerk at Union Press is still fighting for the Lm1 increase per week, which is given to the vast majority of workers who have been employed at Union Press after a length of time.

When awarded, this increment promotes a worker from Group 3, the lowest grade possible, to Group 2.

At the moment Mr Portelli, better known at the Union Press as il-kuccarun is on the lowest possible Lm80 a week salary.