Educators still without agreement as UPE lashes out at rival union’s ‘ineffective’ school strike

Two months after educators went on strike over stalled sectoral agreement talks between the Malta Union of Teachers and government, nothing has changed, rival unions UPE said.

“Educators are still stuck with their old pay-packet structure and outdated conditions of work… Nearly two months down the line, the only beneficiary of the MUT strike was ironically the government,” the Union of Professional Educators said on Monday.

UPE Executive Head Graham Sansone accused the MUT of adopting an “ineffective strategy” during negotiations with government, saying educators gained nothing from the one-day strike.

“Striking educators lost on average close to €100 each, which sum is not inclusive of missed supervision duties which are remunerated separately, saving government approximately €1 million in unpaid wages,” the UPE said, adding the MUT has so far kept its own proposals hidden from its members.

The sectoral agreement for educators in the public sector expired in December 2022 and more than a year later there is no sign of a new agreement being reached. The MUT, which enjoys sole recognition and thus entitled to discuss such agreements, ordered a one-day strike in November after talks broke down. Educators who took strike action were not paid.

The MUT has not revealed to its members what its demands are, leaving many to ask whether the strike was even worth it.

The government has insisted its proposal is substantial but no details have emerged, leaving educators in the dark as to what is being discussed.

Now, rival union, UPE, is calling out the MUT for its failure to conclude a new sectoral agreement in good time.

“With hindsight, the UPE reaffirms its claim that the MUT strike was nothing more than a diversionary tactic intended to assuage educators’ wrath at the MUT’s ineptitude. The UPE foretold all this as no trade union worth its salt would call a strike with so much as two weeks’ advance notice,” Sansone said. “At the end of the day, educators gained nothing from the strike except a hefty deduction from their salary.”

He said educators are none the wiser as to what the MUT is asking for and what the government is ready to offer.

“Whilst the MUT expected all educators to follow its call to industrial action it did not feel the need to reciprocate by providing them with adequate information as to what was actually on the table when the strike was called,” Sansone said.

He asked why the MUT failed to provide adequate information before and after the strike on its proposals and the government’s offer. He also asked whether the MUT’s own executive council was privy to all documentation related to the sectoral agreement.

Sansone is also seeking answers as to whether the financial aspect of the agreement is the only stumbling block, and whether educators are going to be paid full arrears from the expiry of the agreement to the date when a new one is signed.