GWU chief makes pitch for debate on living wage

General Workers’ Union secretary general Josef Bugeja has called for a national debate on the possible introduction of a living wage.

“I am personally in favour of a living wage, but it must be analyzed carefully as it would require a restructuring of our entire salary system ” he said at the end of a GWU conference on precarious work. “Of course, it mustn’t result in businesses closing down and workers losing their jobs. However, we shouldn’t be scared to have such a debate.”

A potential living wage would replace the minimum wage, and would be a calculation of the basic income that workers need to meet their basic needs, such as shelter, food and clothing.

During a debate at the conference, Caritas director Leonid McKay and Alleanza Kontra l-Faqar official Joseph Bartolo both agreed that the minimum wage should increase.

“Instead of increasing the minimum wage in its recent Budget, the government chose to increase their allowances, which is welcome as their disposable income increased,” McKay said. “However, while it is the state’s duty to shoulder absolute responsibility for poverty, employers should have their own responsibility to take on as well.”

Bartolo similarly insisted that salaries for low-income earners should increase, warning that the current system in Malta is one that encourages employers to pay low salaries for the sake of maintaining the country’s competitiveness.

“Politicians often say that the economy cannot handle salary increases, but by doing so they are unknowingly placing people in poverty and precarious work,” he said. “This is a political argument, it is a question of whether our politicians believe in social justice or not. Given that the economy is growing so much, why aren’t salaries also increasing? If you take purchasing power into account, salaries in Malta are the lowest they’ve been for the past 25 years, which is pushing a lot of people into poverty. The government shouldn’t just hand out €1 here and €2 there, but should increase salaries substantially.”

Mark Musu, permanent secretary at the ministry for social policy, also pondered whether the debate on whether the government should increase the minimum wage should shift into a debate on whether it should introduce a living wage.

However, he said that the minimum wage should not be looked at in isolation, noting that as of next year’s Budget people on the minimum wage will receive an extra €4 top-up every week.

“Indeed, if you take all these benefits into account, many elderly people earn enough to meet the minimum requirements highlighted in Caritas’ poverty report,” he said. “The government’s strategy was to first stabilize the situation, bring in investment and create wealth, and it is now starting to distribute that wealth.”

He added that the government has studied the Caritas study in detail and implemented some of its proposals in the Budget, and already has the gist of some of the proposals that will be announce din the next three Budgets.

‘Women working precariously at strip clubs, massage parlours’

National Council of Women president Mary Gaerty warned that several women are working in precarious conditions at the gentleman’s clubs in Paceville and the massage parlours that have sprouted up across the island.

“There are many invisible women who work in precarious jobs, some of whom are also victims of human trafficking and violence,” she said. “We shouldn’t be scared to address these issues, but address them head-on.”

Similarly, Leonid McKay said that new pockets of precarious work have popped up in recent years – notably in the entertainment and domestic care sectors.

“There are working poor in Malta and although the rate is not as high as it is in other EU countries, we should still start addressing certain sectors,” he said. “The Budget for next year shows that the voice of the poorest in society is now being heard, but this is only the first step.”