The Union Haddiema Maghqudin and the General Workers Union both expressed their satisfaction that the workers who arrived late at their office last Monday will not have any leave deducted from their allotment. Neither will they lose part of their pay for arriving late because of the heavy rains that hit Malta on the day.

Those who, on the other hand, preferred to stay at home all day will have a full day reduced from their vacation leave.

We have our reservations about the decision taken by the head of the civil service (not to deduct leave or wages). It would have perhaps been better if the hours lost due to the heavy rains were made up for in overtime, rather than just being considered as “authorised absence”.

By choosing to go down this road, Dr Godwin Grima has opened a can of worms. Each time there will be a heavy downpour early in the morning, it will give a very valid excuse for any worker to report in late and then claim “authorised absence”. And, these people would be correct in claiming this because of the precedent that was set last Monday.

What will happen then? Will the country lose hours of work, hours of productivity, each time it rains? What would happen if we lived in a country where it rains all the time during winter?

And what will the people who did their best to arrive at work on time last Monday – and many of them did – do next time round? Will they do the same thing again, or will they stay home until the rain stops?

The warning issued by the Civil Protection Department must have been the main reason why Dr Grima took this decision.

Even here, however, we have our observations to make. The CPD told people not to leave their homes “unnecessarily”. It did not tell people to stay at home all day. It’s one thing if your plans to go shopping in Valletta had to be cancelled, and another thing if you had to go to work.

But, it seems, some people use every excuse to shun their duties and responsibilities. And so they interpreted the CPD warning as being a chance to stay in bed for longer, and get paid for it anyway.

Unions are doing their duty when they defend their members in such circumstances. But they would do a better service if they instill a sense of duty in them too. In their statements to express their satisfaction at the decision taken by Dr Grima, it would have been a good idea if they added a line or two about workers’ responsibilities.