The Malta Union of Midwives and Nurses (MUMN) strongly protested Tuesday against the introduction of additional taxes on Third Country Nationals (TCNs) working as nurses through the new Budget.
At a time when Malta's health sector and elderly care homes are heavily dependent on foreign nurses to maintain their services, introducing additional taxation on TCN nurses sends the wrong message and puts Malta a less attractive destination for much-needed healthcare professionals, the union said.
TCNs are not an additional burden on our healthcare system. They are an essential part of the workforce that keeps it functioning, it added.
Private and government hospitals, Church elderly homes and government nursing homes rely on these workers entirely to provide essential services to patients and residents. Without their contribution, existing staff shortages would become even more difficult to manage, putting additional pressure on Maltese nurses.
MUMN questioned the reasoning behind imposing additional financial burdens on nurses whom the country actively needs and recruits to fill vacancies in essential services. Instead of discouraging these workers, Government should be introducing measures that attract, retain and support more TCN nurses.
It is important to remember that TCNs nurses working in healthcare and elderly care are not simply filling vacancies, the MUMN said. They are caring for vulnerable patients, supporting elderly residents and working alongside their Maltese colleagues in demanding environments, often under considerable pressure.
Government cannot, on the one hand, depend on TCNs to sustain its health and elderly care services and, on the other hand, introduce measures that make working in Malta financially less attractive.
MUMN therefore called upon Government to reconsider these Budget measures and introduce an exemption from the additional taxation for TCNs nurses employed in the health sector and elderly care services.
The country cannot afford to jeopardise the availability of an already essential workforce. Any policy that risks discouraging the nurses must be carefully reconsidered, particularly when the consequences could ultimately be felt by patients, elderly residents and the entire healthcare workforce.
MUMN expected the government to recognise the importance of these workers and ensure that taxation policies do not undermine the sustainability and quality of Malta's health and elderly care services.
The new taxation measures would not only risk the services of the present health care system and the elderly care but seriously jeopardize the new plans to open the new facilities. We are already in a serious situation with the present nursing shortages, let alone oblitirate our TCNs ftom our country. We can all forget the new plans to open new facilities.
MUMN said it will continue to defend the interests of all healthcare workers, irrespective of their nationality, because quality healthcare and elderly care depend on every member of the workforce.
MUMN said it is requesting an urgent meeting with the Hon. Deputy Prime Minister so that MUMN will be present a number of proposals to be taken in consideration before implementing the budget measures being an employer of the nurses workforce.