Justice for all workers 

Without going into the details of the litigation between the then Labour government and the majority shareholders of the Grand Hotel Verdala who, in the end, were the Mark Stein Settlement Trust, the hotel closed its doors on December 20, 1982 and the employees were sent home without receiving any payment whatsoever, which means they were not paid their wages, the annual bonus and termination benefits including notice money. 

The Grand Hotel Verdala reopened in March 1987 and was sold in April 1994. Photo: Mark Zammit Cordina

When this happened, the General Workers’ Union, under the guidance of the late Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici, ordered the employees to stage a sit-in, which lasted for nearly three months. In the end, word was sent round from the GWU for the employees to stop their sit-in as this would upset any prospective buyer – and, at the time, there were buyers. 

Mifsud Bonnici, who later became prime minister, also promised the employees that, once the hotel was sold, they would be paid any monies due to them. In fact, when the hotel was sold to the Malta Development Corporation, the employees were awarded 200 Maltese liri, which was the amount of privileged debt due to them by law!

The hotel’s ex-GWU shop steward, Noel Farrugia, who later became a minister in the Labour government, can vouch for the above facts. The amounts which are still due to the employees can easily be obtained from the court case on the liquidation of the Grand Hotel Verdala after its sale to the Malta Development Corporation, which reopened it in March 1987 and eventually sold it in April 1994. 

Some of the ex-employees are no longer with us but in no way should they or their families be forgotten. 

Freddie Clark – former general manager, Grand Hotel Verdala (1987 – 1997), Rabat

Apple maps

Apple have been placing adverts in Times of Malta advising that they are criss-crossing Malta to create up-to-date road maps. Unfortunately, Trejqet is-Summien, the short dead-end street off Antonio Schembri Street, in Kappara, where my house is situated, does not appear at all on Google maps.

This has been causing us never-ending problems with deliveries or pickup by taxis and I sincerely hope that Apple will make sure they do not make the same omission.

Alex Agius Cesareo – Kappara