Two staff members from the Institute of Tourism Studies (ITS) have been fired after having allegedly followed directives issued by the Union of Professional Educators (UPE), Executive Head at the UPE Graham Sansone has told The Malta Independent.
The UPE is considered as the minority union as compared to the recognised union by ITS, the Malta Union of Teachers.
The UPE had filed a constitutional case against ITS, the Ministry of Tourism as well as the State Advocate after ITS failed to reach a satisfactory conclusion following letters intimating disciplinary action against members of staff for following the UPE’s directives.
On Monday, two staff members were fired due to having obeyed directives issued by UPE. The industrial action was issued due to health and safety concerns as well as pedagogy.
Sansone told this newsroom that management at ITS had decided to combine foundation classes with diploma students, with students in the foundation classes doing the same practical exercises with diploma students.
He said that students in foundation classes would have only just started their studies at the school, and ITS management treated this as a pilot project, copying an example from a foreign school.
Sansone said that the letters based the argument on clause 38 of the collective agreement signed between ITS and the recognised union at ITS, the Malta Union of Teachers (MUT).
The clause said that:
“The management and the union agreed that unofficial industrial action is detrimental to both the institute and the union and as such is not to be supported. It is agreed that any academic/s who organise/s and/or take/s part in any unofficial industrial action, shall be liable to disciplinary action which may lead to dismissal. ‘Unofficial industrial action’ is any type of industrial action not initiated by the recognised union.”
This means that any industrial action issued by a union which is not the MUT, could not be supported. In this case, MUT is the majority union, whilst UPE is the minority union.
The UPE had subsequently filed a trade dispute, deeming clause 38 as unconstitutional and as one which goes against the basic freedom workers have, to be affiliated with a union of their choice.
“Industrial democracy is under threat. Government is allowing for this to happen. It is giving directions to its entities, allowing social injustice, and allowing for the dismissal of two staff members, whose livelihoods have been taken away from them,” Sansone said.
The two members of staff have 10 days to appeal the decision.
Sansone condemned ITS CEO Pierre Fenech as well as government for allowing their subordinates to deviate from the state of the rule of law, which, he said, has a clear interpretation that everyone has a right to obey directive from unions they form part of.
Sansone said that government should be careful in cases such as this, as Malta’s rule of law has already been tainted by scandals across the country.
Sansone said that the UPE will be considering taking the case to the Council of Europe, as well as the courts and any legal action available.
“This is not an isolated case, but a potential risk to all workers who work with the government. The biggest employer in the country should ensure that these things do not happen,” Sansone said.
Reacting to the news, ITS said in a statement that any action taken on its workers was “always in conformity with the laws of Malta and with the procedures delineated in the institute’s collective agreement.”
On the constitutional case filed by the UPE, ITS said that it will let justice take its course without trying to “influence or prejudice” the work of the courts.
“The institute has full faith in our country’s courts, and therefore will not be doing anything to interfere with comments or statements which are totally out of place at this stage,” ITS said.
UPE statement
During the past few weeks, a rapidly deteriorating state of affairs in industrial democracy has developed, the UPE said in a statement. All stakeholders have failed to ensure the protection of workers' rights, starting with the Department of Employment and Industrial Relations (DIER), government entities such as the Institute for Tourism Studies (ITS) as well as the Ministry of Tourism, the employer directly responsible for ITS, the union added.
“The evidence for the government's failure to protect Industrial democracy is overwhelming when it denies any worker, in any industry, be it private or state-owned, to be affiliated with any trade union of their choice. Contrary to the rights enshrined in the nation's constitution and incorporated in the law of the land.”
“Under the current administration, bullies within state-owned entities have been given room to trample upon the constitutional rights of workers by dictating what union they are allowed to subscribe to and which directives they can follow.”
“If one dares go against the management's choice of union (such as what has happened at ITS) one is intimidated with the possibility of dismissal, referring to the case of the dismissed workers.”
"We honestly hope that this was an isolated and a misguided case and not the norm within a government-run institution, as this would tarnish the reputation of the Maltese State upholding the rule of law with international observers within the EU," the UPE said.
“If this were not scandalous enough, such attitudes and decisions taken within government entities undermine the principle that the government should lead by example as Malta's largest employer with its core values enshrined in its statute to defend and bring social justice for all the workers.”
The UPE said that it is determined that the voice of the defenceless will be heard and that justice will prevail both locally and abroad.
The union said that workers are being left vulnerable to attacks from state entities who disregard the law and believe that by harassing workers they can create a negative atmosphere in the workplace to discourage other workers from joining a union
“The DIER has not yet concluded its investigation in to the illegal deduction from the salary of the mentioned workers at ITS. We hope that adequate resources are given to such entities whose independent role is imperative for industrial democracy to flourish and counter the abuses that may be committed by obdurate employers.”
UPE will in the coming days issue various statements informing the general public on the latest events and also provide a course of action to be undertaken in these difficult days ahead.
PN says government is violating constitutional right of workers
In a statement, the Nationalist Party accused government of denying workers the constitutional right of association, and the right to obey a directive given by the union which represents them, even if it does not have a representative majority.
The PN described the situation where two employees were fired for obeying directives of their union, the Union of Professional Educators (UPE), as ‘illegal’ and ‘unacceptable.’
It said that the fact that an unconstitutional clause in the ITS collective agreement with the Malta Union of Teachers (MUT), where only one union can present an industrial dispute, passed through the hands of the Department for Industrial and Employment Relations (DIER), goes against every human and worker’s rights.
The PN said that the DIER’s job is to ensure that no article in a collective agreement goes against the law, as well as against the rights of all workers regardless of their choice of union or representation. The failure of this, shows the state the department is in, the PN said.
It reiterated that every union should have the right to represent its members without removing the benefits that the representative union has.
The Nationalist party had also already informed government about this situation in a statement on December 30, which Prime Minister Robert Abela's government ignored, it said.
The PN called for the reinstatement of the two workers who have been fired, and their immediate compensation of the loss of wages they suffered, which, is also against the law.
“No worker should be discriminated against for the choice of their union,” it said.
The Nationalist Party also called for the DIER to open an investigation, to ensure that such clauses, which go against the law and the constitution, are removed.