Enormous advances in the mentality regarding working women were made by Maltese society in a relatively short time, but there are still major milestones to be reached.

Equality issues were discussed during the fifth annual conference of the national Commission for the Promotion of Equality. Sina Bugeja, NCPE executive director, presented an overview of the commission’s 2008 annual report.

There is still a persisting need for adequate family-friendly measures, such as recognising the importance of tele-working and child-care facilities that encourage more female participation in the labour force. A balance between the change in mentality and the structure it works around needs to be struck.

On one hand, Maltese women are attaining excellent results in tertiary education, with more women graduating than men, on the other hand Malta placed a low 83rd out of 103 countries with its gender gap in a survey published by the World Economic Forum. Malta ranked 107th with a female to male labour force participation ratio of 0.55. Women not entering the workforce may be attributed to the lack of facilities that support working parents.

In last year’s budget the government introduced three childcare centres in Gharghur, Paola and Luqa schools. The government also promised the opening of another 10 over the next 10 years..

Social Policy Minister John Dalli said the NCPE has contributed to the way Maltese perceived discrimination issues. NCPE contributed in the strengthening of national legislation and government practices. It plays a major role in empowering individuals, raising awareness and making the information accessible for all by providing training to employees in both the public and private sectors.

The NCPE receives an average of one complaint of discrimination per week. Complaints range from issues concerning sexual harassment, race or gender discrimination, and family friendly measures. Victims of such cases submit their complaint in written form along with relevant documentation supporting their claim. NCPE then investigates the situation and draws its conclusions, taking in consideration both the victim and the side of the party said to be offending.

Sina Bugeja said the NCPE has become a driving force in carrying out research and shedding light on a multitude of issues concerning equality. Research on diversity management, European income tax laws, multiple discrimination and other areas was carried out last year.