The “aggressive” stance taken by the Malta Union of Teachers will negatively impact students, the Church said.

On Wednesday, the MUT declared a trade dispute with the Secretariat for Catholic Education “on the breach of working conditions of educators by twenty-three church schools.”

The dispute is caused “by the decision of these schools to multiply the workload of educators without any consultation or consideration when they decided to alternate attendance of students and create an unmanageable system for educators,” it said.

“All these schools did to cater for their new services is to seek the easiest solution by multiplying the workload of educators, which is unsustainable and irresponsible.”

MUT said it is not against schools providing additional services such as online learning. “However, as a trade union, the MUT will never accept that this is done at the expense of blatant breach of the agreements in place and with schools completely disregarding their own employees.”

The decision of these church schools to alternate attendance of students has led to a wave of pressures on the school community, who are being expected to juggle between many teaching modes interchangeably for several hours, including face-to-face teaching to students who are at school, live streaming to students who are at home and recording of lessons to students who are at home, it said.

“All this is exceeding the workload of educators, not to mention the mammoth task to carry out preparation for all lessons in all teaching modes. The MUT is warning schools once again to either address this situation or start facing industrial action.”

In a statement, the Curia said Church Schools will continue to ensure that the health and safety of educators, students and staff in all Church schools remains paramount, in adherence to the guidelines issued by Public Health Authorities.

They also remain committed to continue providing over 17,000 students with the right to their education, despite the challenging situations being faced.

Church Schools recognise that parents/guardians have the right to protect their children and their household in the manner they deem most suitable. This includes children who require shielding, are on quarantine or cannot physically attend school for other reasons.

They also believe in and trust the professionalism of their educators, and recognise the importance of e-learning, use of digital tools and of varied modalities mentioned in the Collective Agreement between the Church and the MUT.

Church Schools will maintain continuous discussions with stakeholders, as long as the health and safety of all students and educators is prioritised, and the right to education within manageable parameters is recognised, the Church said.

“Whilst regretting the position taken by MUT, which will negatively impact students, parents and educators, Church Schools will only be willing to engage in further discussions once the Union’s threats are withdrawn.”