MCAST lecturers kicked off the scholastic year with a protest over the failure of college management to agree to a new teachers' union collective agreement after a delay of almost three years.

Malta Union of Teachers said the union has lost faith in the new MCAST management and will refuse to negotiate with the new college principal. The union is, however, willing to negotiate directly with the government. 

Lecturers, dressed in black to “mourn the working conditions” of the faculty, filled the main entrance of MCAST Paola campus on Tuesday. 

“We feel sad and frustrated and with no motivation. That’s why we are dressed in black to show we are in the darkest times at MCAST,” lecturer Ted Darmanin said. 

Backed by dozens of lecturers holding placards, Malta Union of Teachers president Marco Bonnici said the union will be announcing more directives later in the day after the new MCAST principal showed he “has no interest in an agreement”.

Bonnici did not indicate what the new directives will include. 

MCAST faculty are under union orders not to reply to emails and not publish examination marks.  

On Tuesday, Bonnici said the new principal, Stephen Vella, proposed that the collective agreement be decided via arbitration proceedings instead of negotiations. 

MUT president Mario Bonnici (centre) addressing the press.

“He said if we do not accept or do not reply to him within a deadline he would take legal action against us. Instead of working to find a solution, the new principal threatened us with legal action,” Bonnici said. 

He said the MUT did not want to leave members' working conditions up to an arbitrator who never set foot in an MCAST campus. 

“Take legal action if you want, because we will not accept your easy solution,” he said to applause. 

Bonnici said the MUT will refuse to negotiate with the principal.

“We have no faith in negotiations led by the principal. What we are saying is that we can negotiate directly with the government. MCAST is a government entity.”

Engineering lecturer Ted Darmanin said he sympathises with students impacted by union directives. 

“We would prefer it if everything ran smoothly and didn’t have any reason to issue directives.  We do not enjoy taking action but we are forced to do so,” he said. 

Lecturer Stephanie Formosa said MCAST lecturers have had enough of being treated as "second class".

"We are qualified and full of knowledge which we pass on to students," said Formosa, who teaches a bachelor's degree programme in vocational education and hairdressing.

Union demands 'unreasonable'

Meanwhile, sources told Times of Malta that the government believes the MUT’s demands are “unreasonable”. 

Sources said the MUT is demanding less contact time with students, the opportunity to leave campus when teachers do not have a lecture, and teleworking for roles that cannot be done remotely. 

“How can a lab technician work from home,” one source said. 

“The salary demands made by the MUT are also too high,” they added.

Education shadow minister Justin Schembri and industrial relations shadow Ivan Castillo were present at the protest.