The government has not attempted to set up any meetings with the Malta Union of Teachers to try and resolve the issues which led to Thursday’s strike action, the union's President Marco Bonnici told The Malta Independent.

The Malta Union of Teachers ordered a strike for all state school teachers to take place today and tomorrow, after Malta yesterday reported a record-high number of 224 cases of Covid-19 – prompting major concern on the reopening of schools. The union had insisted that, due to current circumstances, schools should remain closed at least until the end of the week and lessons should be held online but talks with the Prime Minister in this regard had broken down.

Both the MUT and the UPE have said that their strike action has been a success.

Bonnici, contacted by The Malta Independent on Thursday, said that neither the Education Ministry nor the government has tried to contact the union after today's strike action, with the last meeting having taken place on Wednesday evening.

The strike action was ordered for today and tomorrow. Asked what will happen next Monday, Bonnici said: "we need to take it day by day at this stage. We have a strike declared for today and tomorrow. Every time there is industrial action we always await that there would be some form of conciliation with the ministry or the government. Until now this has not materialised and if it does, we would go and see what the outcome would be. If it does not materialise, then we will keep on as we are. As for what will happen on Monday, I think we need to take things hour by hour in these circumstances."

The MUT President was asked for his reaction to the criticism levelled against the union that students and parents are the ones suffering due to the strike.

"Our actions are mainly intended to protect teachers, students and families," he said. He highlighted that if someone who tests positive for Covid-19 in school, then there are all the consequences as a result of it, including contact tracing followed by a whole family going into quarantine.

He also said that the rate of infection could be higher, even due to the UK variant of the virus, adding that they do not know how this variant will affect children. "We believe that this measure, even though it was short notice - and I understand the concerns of parents - was introduced to also protect children, families and everyone in the education sector."