Social partners warn against repetition of utility bills fiasco
Charlot Zahra
Ahead of a crucial meeting of the Malta Council for Economic and Social Development (MCESD) this morning at Castille, the social partners have warned against a repetition of last year’s botched dialogue over the utility tariffs, which resulted in mass protests and the threat of civil disobedience.
During this meeting, government will be presenting its pre-budget document for the Budget 2010, following Finance Minister Tonio Fenech’s declaration on Sunday that next year’s budget will be “tough”.
The MCESD meeting will also be attended by Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi.
The social partners who spoke to sister paper Business Today were anxious to avoid last year’s experience, especially the mishandling of the introduction of the new water and electricity hikes, where social dialogue went “sour”, in the words of Union Haddiema Maghqudin (UHM) chief Gejtu Vella.
“What is most important for the UHM at this stage is the restoration proper and constructive social dialogue,” he said yesterday.
“After last year, when social dialogue was abused by the Government, now it is the right time to restore proper social dialogue,” the UHM chief insisted.
Vella explained how “in view of the bad international economic climate, we need to make a national effort so that all these problems that are affecting businesses, workers, pensioners and the entire country.
“This national effort has to be planned, coordinated in such a way as to ensure that everybody feels part of the effort,” he told Business Today.
Asked whether the UHM was going to present a set of proposals at tomorrow’s MCESD meeting, the UHM Secretary-General explained how the UHM would be presenting a set of proposals following tomorrow’s MCESD meeting.
“Tomorrow will be an introductory meeting, when the Government will be presenting its projections on the Maltese economy for the coming few months,” he added.
“This will include, among other things, whether the Maltese economy will be contracting or growing, the number of jobs that will be created, and the cost of living, among other things,” Vella told Business Today.
Reacting to Finance Minister Tonio Fenech’s declaration of a “tough budget” ahead, General Workers’ Union (GWU) chief Tony Zarb warned the Nationalist Government from using the budget deficit to impose more burdens on the people.
“The Government must not forget that the people are already saddled with a lot of burdens, especially with the utility tariffs. The people surely cannot shoulder more burdens on it,” Zarb said.
“We hope that the Government does not to try and solve the issue that it has with the EU over the budget deficit to saddle the people with more burdens, the GWU Secretary-General warned.
“We also hope that the Government does not try and use the social partners in the MCESD as a rubberstamp for his own convenience,” Zarb added.
Asked whether the GWU was going to present any proposals to the Government during the meeting, Zarb said telegraphically: “We must have the document before presenting our proposals.
“Tomorrow’s meeting is not intended for us social partners to present our proposals, but rather to hear the Government,” he said.
On the other hand Malta Employers’ Association (MEA) director-general Joseph Farrugia expressed his agreement with Finance Minister Tonio Fenech’s statement of a tough budget ahead.
“This Budget definitely has to be a tough one in view of the international economic situation that Malta is facing,” Farrugia said in his no-holds-barred style.
“The Maltese economy has contracted during the last two quarters of this year, and it is imperative for the Government to dedicate any financial resources available to those sectors that realty need them,” Farrugia warned.
The MEA chief said that “the main priority for the country now was the safeguarding of jobs in the private sector, rather than acceding to requests for wage increases by Government employees.”
The MEA chief reiterated the Association’s stand for the revision of the COLA mechanism, saying that wage increases should only be given when corresponding to an increase in productivity.
“We have been long saying that COLA increases should only be given to minimum wage earners,” Farrugia told Business Today.
“Moreover, this year, when the economy is contracting, the COLA increase will only lead to further inflation in Malta, which is already high,” Farrugia declared.
“While in the past, most companies could afford the COLA increase, many companies this year cannot afford any increases in view of the tight situation they are facing,” the MEA boss told Business Today.
A spokesperson for the Malta Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry (MCCEI) told us that the Chamber was not in a position to answer as President Helga Ellul could not be contacted in time.
In his interview on the PN’s Radio 101 on Sunday morning, Tonio Fenech said it was true that there were “positive signs which show that the economy has started to slowly recover but one has to move cautiously.
“Although the Government does not believe that it should increase the tax burden unnecessarily, the alternative solution is to reduce subsidies. Why should I assist someone to pay a bill he can well afford to?” Fenech asked.
“While the government wants to help those in need, it does not want to assist those who are not,” he warned.
Last week, the European Commission warned Malta to cut its budget deficit to less than 3% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by the end of 2010.
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