The General Workers’ Union has finally been given the appointment to meet the Prime Minister. This will be held on Wednesday.

The union wrote to Dr Lawrence Gonzi four times over the past two months, and after receiving only acknowledgments, it has now been given a date and a time.

The crux of the matter is the water and electricity surcharge issue, which the union has long been saying is putting too heavy a burden on workers and their families.

The GWU held two public protest marches since the revision of the surcharge was announced in late October. The first was held on the eve of the opening of the Commonwealth Heads of State Meeting in November, and the second one was organised a month later.

No other protests have been held since, but the union has made it clear that its campaign is not over. Any activities have been put on hold, pending new developments, mainly a strong signal from the government that it is addressing the problem in a serious manner.

It is difficult to predict what will happen on Wednesday. Will the meeting sort things out? Will the union be satisfied with what Dr Gonzi has to say? Will there be an agreement for further talks to take place? Or will the union deem that discussions are not leading anywhere and decide to go back to the streets?

Three months have passed since the union’s second public protest. Many were of the opinion that once the new year started the GWU would have resorted to other manifestations in the streets to protest against the government introducing the water and electricity surcharge.

But this did not happen. The union has, so far, waited, some would say patiently, to see how matters develop.

And matters have developed quickly. It was initially said that the surcharge would have gone up gradually, month after month, but this did not take place. Instead, the surcharge was first dropped from 55 per cent in November and December to 47.5 per cent for January and February, but then shot up to 67.5 per cent for this month and the next.

Of course, this is largely due to fluctuations in the international price of oil, and the government and Enemalta Corporation are not to blame for what is happening in the oil industry. Still, it must the said that the surcharge is having a negative effect on families and industry.

The union has waited. This newspaper had criticised the GWU for ordering its first public protest on the eve of CHOGM because it was not the right time to hold such an activity. Now, the union must be commended for not taking rash decisions that could have possibly caused more harm. Hopefully, the GWU will stick to the negotiating table in search of a solution that is acceptable to all and, most importantly, in the best interest of the country.

The crucial point could possibly be the outcome of the independent audit that Enemalta called for on the mechanics of the surcharge calculation. The union has welcomed the initiative, although it insisted that this fell short of meeting its own proposals, which focused mainly on the impact the fuel surcharge is having on workers and pensioners.

Wednesday’s meeting between the Prime Minister and the GWU might not lead to an outright solution, but it could be a step in the right direction. The two sides start from diametrically opposing views, but the meeting could draw them closer if they understand each other’s position.

The Prime Minister must realise that the GWU is simply voicing the people’s concern. On the other hand, the GWU must understand that the government can only do so much on this particular issue and that it is planning to introduce measures – such as reforms to taxation – to ease the burden.

It is only through dialogue and consultation that the existing problems could be resolved.