Muslims gathered at the Ospizio in Floriana last Friday for their Friday prayers after the government offered the venue to the community following protests against Muslim prayer in public. The need for a new venue was due to the increase of numbers in the Muslim community, which has made is impossible for all to pray at the mosque in Paola every week.

The Malta Independent asked Bader Zeina, representing the Muslim community in Malta whether he thinks Muslims would be asking too much from their employers for permission to leave work for their prayer. Zeina replied that, from his experience, many Maltese employers understand and appreciate a Muslim’s dedication to prayer.

“Some Maltese employers actually dedicated a room for Muslims to be able to pray in. Most of the employers are very flexible, they will even let Muslims leave for prayer without imposing on them the need to work the hours they lost,” he added.

Following this, The Malta Independent asked a number of employer bodies about whether employers should give up to 2 hours off on Friday, over and above the normal amount of leave, or perhaps an alternative agreement could be made. The newsroom also asked whether the bodies had ever heard of any similar cases.

All four bodies replied similarly in the way that they said it is up to the employers’ discretion whether to allow a specific place and time for prayer in the case of Muslim workers, but then they each had their own perspective on the issue.

President of General Retailers and Traders Union, Paul Abela added to the previously mentioned point that one must consider the impact where, if a work force is made up of a Muslim majority, then one cannot possibly allow a majority to stop working for a period of time. The GRTU President also said that legislature on the issue would be a burden, so, in the end, it is still better for employers to take the decision in their own hands.

Director General of Malta Employers’ Association, Joseph Farrugia insisted that it is of paramount importance to ensure equal work conditions for everyone. That means that irrespective of religion, Malta’s public day of rest is Sunday. Mr Farrugia stated that employers cannot possibly allow hours in different days of the week to be given off in the name of religion. Otherwise anyone can go up to the employer and say they need a day off because they want to pray because their religion says so. That being said, if an agreement is reached at management level, then so be it.

Media and Information Officer of the General Workers’ Union, Ivin Catania said that although it is the prerogative of the management whether or not to allow a time and place for prayer, one must keep in mind that everything must be regulated. The GWU have no objection to management accepting requests at their discretion on the matter, however, it is the management’s responsibility to ensure that equal measures are attributed to different religious denominations in the workplace to ensure lack of discrimination.

The Malta Chamber of Commerce said that Employment laws in Malta provide for numerous scenarios as it prescribes rights and obligations on both the employer and the employee in special situations.  The Malta Chamber expects all its members to respect the laws of the country in full. Having said that, they are aware that numerous employers are sensitive to the religious needs of their employees, and together they find solutions which work out both ways. The Chamber said they welcome such arrangements; however, echoing the other bodies again, it remains at the discretion of the employer, in light of the nature of the sector, to accommodate such requests.

The Malta Independent also contacted the Union Haddiema Maghqudin, but up to the time of going to print, no replies were received.