Four shore foremen filed an application before the First Hall of Civil Court in its Constitutional Jurisdiction saying that their constitutional rights to enjoy their property have been breached.

The four, Anthony Attard, Anthony Attard, Armando Chircop and Anthony Spiteri said a new collective agreement proposed by the Union Haddiema Maghqudin (UHM) which enjoyed sole recognition, would make them forfeit their license to practice their trade, which they held was their property.

According to the application, two new foremen who happened to be brothers and had not built a clientele as big as theirs were the driving force behind the union’s proposed collective that would make foremen retire once they were 61 years old. Foremen nearing that age would be asked to forfeit their license against a payment. The UHM said it enjoyed sole recognition within the sector.

The four said the agreement cannot be enforced on them as the union represented employed persons, while they were self-employed. They also claimed that Communications and Competitiveness Minister Censu Galea threatened them with not renewing their license.

They also asked the court to enforce the prohibitory injunction it approved on 16 November, in which it agreed that they were self-employed and not subject to early retirement schemes.

The application was filed against the Malta Maritime Authority, the Prime Minister, the Communications and Competitiveness Ministry and the Attorney General.

Lawyers Joseph Brincat and Deborah Mifsud Attard signed the application.