The Health and Safety at Work Bill has passed unanimously in Parliament on Monday.

The PN voted in favour of government's bill, which intends to create a new legal framework to prevent workplace accidents, despite saying that more needs to be done to prevent workplace accidents.

The new law will introduce hefty increases to administrative and criminal fines for those who are found in breach of safety regulations on the workplace, with the bill also including an increase to the number of enforcement officials within the Occupational Health and Safety Authority (OHSA).

The first offense will carry a minimum fine of €1,500, and a maximum of €50,000. In serious cases, there is also a maximum of two years imprisonment.

If one reoffends a second time, the minimum fine will then increase, and the prison sentence of a maximum of two years will increase to a minimum of one year to a maximum of four years.

Regarding administrative fines, fines increased from being less than €500, to now up to €20,000.

Describing it as "revolutionary," Prime Minister Robert Abela had said that the law is directed at minimising foreseeable risks, regardless of the commercial activity taking place.

The law also stressed on the importance of quality and standards, and the Occupational Health and Safety Authority (OHSA), will be given more power to maintain the highest standards, and government will also be more than doubling its officials from the current 30, to 70 officials by the end of 2024, reaching 80 by the end of 2025.

The bill introduces a 24/7 helpline, create a Tribunal to ensure a fair and just system, as well as introduces a Health and Safety Responsible Officer (HSRO).

Nationalist Party is voting in favour of “half-baked” health and safety bill, emphasises that bill is incomplete

The Nationalist Party said it would be voting in favour of the government’s proposed health and safety bill, but says that it will persist so that “what remains to be done is done”.

In a statement published on Monday prior to the vote, the PN said that it has given all it can so that the law regarding health and safety in the workplace is improved. Having said that, the PN added that the draft, proposed by the Labour Party, “has its shortcomings and does not address all of the sector’s challenges”.

The Opposition said that it takes health and safety in the workplace very seriously, which is why the party has given all its contribution to see the proposed draft improved “within the limitations with which it was presented by the government, half-baked and hurried”.

PN MPs Stanley Zammit and Ivan Castillo continued that there needs to be much more work done so that the safeguards needed are provided in order to reduce injuries and deaths in the workplace. The MPs said that the draft was presented a few days before Parliament’s summer recess, and they remarked that this was done with partisan motives, “to have done something from what was mentioned in the Jean Paul Sofia public inquiry, and not in the best interest of workers”.

Zammit and Castillo said that the PN would like to thank its leader, Bernard Grech, as well as the members of the Opposition, along with the social partners and the representatives of the sector for their contribution during the committee stage, which the MPs commented was the only opportunity given to discuss matters with the government in more than a year since its ideas were submitted.

The PN concluded by saying that the government needs to stop dragging its feet and implement the regulations that are still missing, “including those related to the HSRO (Health and Safety Reporting Officer). It added that the government needs to review and update existing regulations, “such as those related to building and construction”.

 Labour party calls Opposition populist and contradictory over Health and Safety at Work Bill

The Labour party on Monday said that the Opposition was populist and contradictory over the Health and Safety at Work Bill, which passed in Parliament earlier in the day.

In a statement, the PL said that, “beyond the populist rhetoric, the Nationalist Party has not presented any concrete proposals regarding the draft law on Health and Safety at Work that the government has submitted to Parliament after extensive consultation.”

It said that through leading this reform, government is demonstrating seriousness, and instead of contributing, the Opposition has claimed that it is being done in haste.

“This is the same Opposition that for many years neglected this sector, including the licensing of contractors, a sector that has operated in our country for so many years without ever being regulated,” the PL said.

It said that the new law on Health and Safety at Work which reforms the framework to reduce risks and accidents at the workplace was created after a long consultation process, including the launch of a White Paper on 28 April, 2023.

“In this process, there were 13 submissions from social partners, including both employer representatives and trade unions, the Malta Insurance Association, the Commissioner for Mental Health, individuals/groups involved in health and safety, and the board of the Occupational Health and Safety Authority, which includes representatives of both workers and employers,” the PL said.

It said that before the draft was submitted, the conclusions and recommendations of the public inquiry into the death of Jean Paul Sofia were also taken into consideration.

“The same Opposition that says this is a rushed reform, on 6 March, tabled a motion in Parliament for the government to implement all the recommendations of the Jean Paul Sofia inquiry within six months,” it said.

The PL said that what the Opposition failed to say is that the open consultation process continued even at Parliamentary Committee stage, as also recognized by social partners and other stakeholders.

“The Labour Party reminds that contrary to what the Opposition has alleged, the government has already implemented several regulations and will continue to do so in the coming time with more regulations and the introduction of administrative instruments that allow for quicker and more effective action,” it said.

The PL said that the Authority is being given the necessary resources to provide the best service, as evidenced by the number of inspections and actions taken by the Authority, which have significantly increased in the past year.

It said that the new law will also empower the authority to delegate its duties, functions, powers, and responsibilities to other competent authorities as deemed necessary for the effective implementation and enforcement of health and safety at work, to further strengthen collaboration with other entities.