ETC inspectorate criticised for finding too few violations

The inspectorate section of the Employment and Training Corporation (ETC) came in for criticism in parliament yesterday, with Labour MP Chris Agius observing that the number of labour law violations detected last year was the lowest in recent years.

The remarks were made when parliament debated the financial estimates of the ETC.

Mr Agius said that the work of the ETC was priceless and the money it spent was good value. However, it still had a lot to do to reach the aims it had been set up for.

The corporation last year spent Lm2.9 million, compared to Lm1.8 million in the previous year. Some 43 per cent of its expenditure went towards programmes and initiatives. The corporation's report said that Lm377,000 were given as grants under Industrial Development Act schemes, but where exactly had these funds gone?

He pointed out that the aim of the ETC was much broader and more important than finding people employment. The ETC had to create the best possible job-creating environment and prepare people in the best possible way for employment.

Last September there were 7,520 registering for employment, an increase of 536 over the same month in the previous year. ETC reports showed that unemployment was again on the increase. Those who were seeking first time employment and those who had been made redundant had increased by over 500.

He pointed out that 41 per cent of the total number of the unemployed were under 30 years old. The ETC had tailor-made specific schemes for these people but unfortunately no improvement was registered. This meant that the corporation was failing, as it was not finding employers who were willing to employ people who lacked experience.

Another problem was that young people were being dismissed by employers before they concluded their probation period.

Another sector of people who were finding it difficult to find employment was that of the over 40s. In September, 36.7 per cent of those registering for work fell within this category. Of these, 88 per cent were men, 67 per cent were married, 26 per cent were illiterate, and 56 per cent had been registering for over a year.

Mr Agius said that the ETC had last year been instrumental in finding a job for 39 disabled, 15 former convicts and 49 former drug addicts.

It was a matter of concern, he said, that the participation of the long-term unemployed in traineeship programmes organised by the corporation was minimal.

He observed that in the past 12 months, 5,623 inspections were carried out by the ETC's inspectors and 1,616 violations were found. This, he said, was the lowest infringement rate found in the past few years and did not reflect reality.

ETC inspectors last year found only 373 persons working while registering for employment. This also did not reflect reality.

Similarly, he could not understand how only 46 foreigners were caught working without a permit. He pointed out that two foreigners had died at the place of work and their colleagues claimed not to know anything about them. What had the ETC done about these cases?

Mr Agius said that were Malta to become an EU member, the number of foreigners working here would increase in every sector.

He pointed out that there had been 2,800 redundancies last year because of closure of enterprises. The majority of these workers had found themselves registering for employment for the first time.

What had the ETC done to assist these people and to prepare them for other jobs? How many of them had found alternative employment?

The past 12 months had also seen a drop of 1,448 in the number of gainfully occupied. Where was new investment? How many jobs had new investment generated?

He asked if the ETC had been involved in early retirement schemes, and whether it had prepared any assistance schemes for those taking up such schemes.

Had any studies been held on the implications of early retirement? He knew former shipyards employees who had voluntarily taken up the early retirement scheme and were now facing financial and psychological difficulties. How many of those who took up the early retirement scheme at the shipyards had found alternative employment?

Dr Karl Chircop, opposition co-spokesman on social policy, asked if the directors of the ETC felt comfortable they could meet the challenges this government was placing on them with EU membership and the job losses that would follow.

Many members of the constituted bodies admitted privately they were against membership and preferred Labour's policy of partnership.

EU membership would mean that foreign workers would be able to work here practically without any restraint. There would be no controls at all for foreigners who came here to work as self-employed.

EU membership would also lead to job losses. For example, the lifting of import restrictions on furniture had led to this sector shedding 400 jobs.

EU membership would also mean lower competitiveness for much of Malta's industry and tourism.

Although the ETC was working to find jobs for the unemployed, the economy was not generating enough jobs to keep up with the number of people who were out of work.

Dr Chircop said the Labour Force Survey on people seeking work was scientifically a better method to assess the labour situation than the ETC's figures.

While the ETC was saying that employment in the public sector had dropped by 1.8 per cent, the LFS showed an increase of 5.5 per cent.

Dr Chircop noted that the ETC was seeking closer cooperation with certain sectors, such as the NSO, MCAST and the National Employment Authority. This was welcome because all organisations involved in the labour sector needed to work together to achieve better results.

Turning to the labour supply issue, Dr Chircop said the fact that the labour force had dropped showed a shrinkage of the economy.

The fact that the Labour supply had dropped could be explained in two ways. Either many people were dying under the age of 60, which was unlikely, or more people were engaged in the black economy. They could be doing this voluntarily to avoid paying taxes or because of the way the system was built with a number of people not being able to make their way into the employment market.

The ETC, therefore, should seek to market its schemes even more aggressively to reach out to these people.

Dr Chircop said he also believed that the government was taking measures aimed at artificially bringing down the unemployment figures, which would explain the way the Labour supply had dropped. There were many housewives who wished to work but did not have the time to do so and there were many youths who left their employment and could not register for six months.

Dr Chircop said the ETC needed to more effectively match the needs of the manufacturing sector with available labour. Foreign investment could not be attracted to Malta unless the island had the necessary skilled workforce to take up opportunities.

Indeed, he felt that MCAST was not doing enough to supply industry with the trained human resources it needed.

Referring to the corporation's accounts, Dr Chircop noted that cash at bank and in hand had increased from Lm350,000 to Lm670,000. Why was this money not used to employ more placement advisers, especially when large scale redundancies were forecast by agencies such as FAS Ireland?

Ms Marie-Louise Coleiro, opposition co-spokesman on social policy said the ETC report itself showed that job opportunities were declining. The ETC report spoke about job placements having increased, but did this increase include people who had joined the ETC's own schemes?

Ms Coleiro referred to employment statistics issued by the NSO based on ETC figures for the period August 2001 to August to 2002. She said that while statistics for this period issued last November 1 showed certain figures, statistics for the same period issued on December 27 showed very different figures on the labour supply, the gainfully occupied and other areas of the labour sector. So how could one trust official figures?

There were also significant discrepancies between figures given in the budget speech and the Economic Survey. While the former showed a 3,600 increase in the gainfully occupied, the survey showed an increase of 3,024.

Ms Coleiro referred to remarks that market liberalisation would increase jobs. This, she said, was true in theory but could only take place if there was a responsible government.

It was true that market liberalisation could open up new opportunities but other sectors could be completely destroyed unless there was proper, long term planning.

Ms Coleiro regretted that the ETC report lacked detail on the number of persons having part time work as their primary job. From 1995 to 2000 the number of men who had part time work as a primary job increased by 78 per cent and the number of women by 74 per cent.

June 2002 statistics showed that 30.5 per cent of the employed in the 15 to 24 age group had part time work as their primary job. The number of people in this age group having a part time job as their primary work had increased by 5.4 per cent in 2002 over 2000.

In the 25-45 age category, 31.2 per cent of men only had a part time job, leading them to an inadequate standard of living.

The EU, Ms Coleiro observed, had established a new social category - that of the working poor, for those people who, although in employment, remained below the poverty threshold. Topmost is this category were part time workers. In Malta, this category of workers needed to be given more attention.

Ms Coleiro referred to the low participation rate in the Training and Employment Exposure Scheme (TEES) for the unemployed aged over 40 and said she knew two persons who had applied for the scheme but who were not even called for an interview. Such factors made her lose confidence in the credibility of the corporation. Had an analysis been made of the effectiveness of the scheme?

Ms Coleiro said she was against anyone abusively receiving social benefits, but the ETC needed to be careful not to strike people off the employment register without justification, perhaps to reduce the number of unemployed.