|
Karl Schembri
The director of local government has inadvertently exposed the government’s Water Services Corporation (WSC) restructuring plans before they were even approved by the prime minister’s office when a couple of weeks ago he instructed corporation workers to start working with local councils.
In an embarrassing incident that has infuriated the prime minister, the WSC and ministers Tonio Borg and Austin Gatt, director Natalino Attard ordered around 10 Gozitan workers not to report to the WSC but to start immediately working at Gozitan councils instead, without prior notice.
MaltaToday has learned that upon receiving their letters, the workers called the General Workers’ Union, which directed them to report to work as usual and demanded an explanation from the government, which in turn overruled Attard’s instructions.
Sources close to Castille said the decision was never authorised by the prime minister’s office and not even the Water Services Corporation was aware that the letters had been sent. While government was planning to transfer workers on loan to the corporation to work with local councils, WSC was still assessing its workforce and the process was not meant to start yet.
The union took the cue from the letter, leading secretary general Tony Zarb to declare during the Valletta protest last week that 350 workers were about to be sacked from WSC. In an exercise of damage control, the corporation insisted the restructuring will only consist of transferring workers on loan from the government to local councils.
“We got to know about the plan to shed workers from WSC by coincidence, in the worst way possible,” said the GWU’s section secretary, Josephine Attard Sultana. “There was no consultation with us, no discussion about their new work conditions. Our Gozitan members were telling us they just received this letter telling them to report to local councils.”
Asked for his comments, Natalino Attard avoided questions and said he would only answer through Tonio Borg’s spokesman.
“I think that by now you should know that all communication should be done via our ministry’s communications co-ordinator, Mr Joseph Azzopardi,” Attard wrote in an e-mail last Wednesday.
But Azzopardi said on Friday evening he received no replies from Attard to send back to MaltaToday.
“We need information about their new work conditions,” Attard Sultana said. “This may affect their allowances and take home pay, but the corporation has yet to give us information about its plans.”
According to Investments Minister Austin Gatt, who is responsible for WSC, the downsizing of the corporation will save it Lm500,000 in overtime and shift allowances. At present there are 1,500 workers with over 300 on loan from the government, mostly unskilled. Sources close to WSC however admit that while the corporation would be saving money, government would still be footing the wage bill of mostly unproductive workers.
This year, WSC made a loss of Lm6.6 million. Gatt wants to reduce losses by a further Lm1.1 million next year “without raising tariffs or sacking workers, although some workers on loan from the civil service would revert to the service”.
kschembri@mediatoday.com.mt
|
