The tug of war between the General Workers’ Union (GWU) and the Health Division will continue at least until 27 August as the union will not be available for talks before that date.
The two parties have been at loggerheads over the upgrade of nursing aides to salary scale 13, an adequate allowance for health assistants and care workers and a better roster for these workers and assistant care workers.
The union on Friday 3 August ordered these workers to stop carrying out work other than distribute food, coffee or tea, stop work related to Mater Dei Hospital, refrain from handling medical files or X-rays and stop making appointments at health centres.
The quarrel between both sides was further embittered by a profuse exchange of accusations through press statements.
The two sides met yesterday at noon, after the industrial action was lifted by the GWU at midnight and the Division sent its invitation 10 minutes later. The meeting lasted five-and-a-half hours and according to Health Minister Louis Deguara, “it finished worse than it had started”.
The minister, who called a press conference later in the afternoon, said the union did not negotiate the three points as a single package, so much so, that it agreed on shelving the scale 13 issue to a later date. He said that this happened after the union realised that this was in violation of the current collective agreement, which was also signed by the GWU. The agreement stipulates that benchmarks should not be tampered with until 2010.
The Institutional Health Director John Cachia said the roster question was not insurmountable, unlike the premium issue. He explained that in 2001, the government gave a premium of Lm195 to nursing aides and health assistants depending on the level of contact with patients. The allowance was also given to care workers with the same conditions this year. The GWU, said Dr Cachia, feels that Lm195 is not enough and suggested a graded scheme, with the minimum being the allowance given to hospital auxiliaries and the maximum being the one granted to nurses.
Mr Mario Grixti Management and Personnel Office said the GWU proposal was not according to normal job evaluation procedures and thus unacceptable.
Dr Cachia said that at one point the GWU officials headed by the Government and Public Entities Section Secretary Louis Marsh walked out of the meeting and came back more than an hour later with Assistant Secretary General Geitu Mercieca. However, the meeting ended with the union reinstating the industrial action and requesting to negotiate the three points altogether.
Minister Deguara accused the GWU of not attending the meeting in bona fide. He said the union officials only attended to quell their conscience before their two-week summer vacation, while patients, especially bedridden ones, would have to endure the industrial action during these two weeks.
Contacted by this newspaper, Mr Marsh said the union’s goodwill on shelving the scale 13 issue was not reciprocated by the Health Division, which did not budge over the allowances issue.
He also accused the Division of meeting another union over the same issues before meeting the GWU. This, he said, prompted the union to apply for sole recognition in representing these health workers in Malta and Gozo.
Mr Marsh said the GWU tried hard to avoid this situation, however, he said, the Health Division left it no other option.