The General Workers’ Union (GWU) has insisted that the seven Drydocks employees, who were discovered sleeping on their night duty shift, should not have been suspended.
The GWU called a media conference yesterday to clarify what was said in another conference the day before.
Minister for Industry, Investment and IT Austin Gatt and Malta Drydocks chairman John Cassar White maintained that the management’s decision to suspend the employees was in line with the code of discipline of the collective agreement, adding that it was unacceptable that union representatives have threatened to step up action should the workers not be allowed to return work by tomorrow. The seven dockyard employees, including a supervisor, were suspended on Monday.
Although the disciplinary board started investigating the case urgently on Friday, around 50 employees protested during work hours and during their break in sympathy with their suspended colleagues.
Metal and construction section secretary Charles Agius told journalists yesterday that the management’s actions in the employees’ regard are not in line with the collective agreement.
Mr Agius said the seven workers were suspended and accused of having breached clause 46 of the code of discipline of the collective agreement, which refers to “idleness and/or loitering and/or skiving on the place of work during normal time and overtime” and also states that “the management may choose to penalise the employee by means of ticket as per clause 90 or else submit the offender to disciplinary procedures”.
This implies that the workers should only have been suspended after being investigated by the disciplinary board and found guilty, stated Mr Agius.
“What the union is saying is that the management had no right to act this way and accusing employees in this manner,” he said.
Furthermore, the management also breached the EU’s working time directive in the run-up to the employees’ suspension. Some dockyard workers were given a 16-hour shift, from 2.30pm till 6am and one particular employee worked from 7am till 5.30pm and again from 10pm till 6am, said the union representative.
These workers were working on a particular job, which their superiors had thought would take longer to complete. However, they had finished the job quicker than anticipated and the work was deemed to be of very high standard, said Mr Agius.
The way in which this matter has been blown out of proportion makes one think there may be ulterior motives. The union cannot understand how such a small matter should have been exploited in such a way, an opinion that Dr Gatt himself shares, said the section secretary.
“We would like to appeal to the Drydocks chairman not to let himself be used like a political ball by those who may have ulterior motives. The chairman is supposed to know exactly the way things took place and it is surprising to see him be part of the scenes we witnessed in Friday’s media conference with the minister,” said Mr Agius, adding the GWU categorically denies that Sammy Meilaq, from the metal and construction section, threatened the Drydocks management, as was portrayed during the same conference.
The section’s executive is calling an urgent meeting tomorrow to discuss this matter. The union also called on the Director of Works to have an urgent conciliation meeting, which is also expected to take place tomorrow.