One driving test every two hours among new directives issued by UHM for Transport Malta employees

The UHM has issued more directives for workers it represents at Transport Malta after government did not present adequate proposals for a new collective agreement.

The industrial action comes into force at 6am on Tuesday, the union announced on Monday afternoon.

Earlier this month, the union announced directives for workers at the Transport Authority, in light of “unacceptable delays” in the drawing up of a new collective agreement.

The union had warned that should the authority not comeback with adequate proposals by Monday 29 May at 4pm, it would be increasing directives.

According to UHM, discussions surrounding a new collective agreement have been ongoing since 2020, and had to be halted during last year’s general election, and also because of changes in the authority’s CEO post.

New directives

• Employees should not sign affidavits related to their work
• No external communication should be carried out with organisations, companies and individuals who make use of Transport Malta’s services. This includes all types of communication including phones, mobile phones, email and social media platforms.
• Telephones, mobiles and emails provided by the authority should not be used, even for internal communication, both inside and outside work hours. This directive excludes communication related to payslips and rosters.
• Driving tests should be carried out once every two hours, rather than one.
• Work uniform should not be worn. Uniforms provided by the authority for employees’ health and safety should be worn

Directives already in place

• When enforcement officers see someone breaking the law, they have been ordered to not issues fines or citations, but issue a warning for educational purposes
• Enforcement officers and senior enforcement officers only work their personal detail
• Employees should not use the authority’s landline phones for internal and external communication