Mepa clients affected by ongoing industrial dispute

An ongoing industrial dispute between the Malta Environment and Planning Authority and the Union Ħaddiema Magħqudin has led to a breakdown of communication between the authority and its clients.

People calling Mepa to enquire about planning applications or requiring any other information are being left high and dry as employees follow 10 directives issued by the union last November. These include not answering phone calls and e-mails.

The industrial action at Mepa was expected to be stepped up as the management had still not addressed pending problems between the union and the authority, UĦM public entities section secretary Josef Vella said.

Mr Vella explained that the main bone of contention was the employment of outsourcing employees who, he said, were being offered inferior conditions to those occupying similar positions within Mepa. Moreover, the outsourced employees were unable to benefit from collective agreement conditions other Mepa employees enjoyed despite doing the same work and receiving the same pay.

He said the management never said to what grade it planned to extend the concept of outsourcing or whether the system would be implemented to avoid promotions and save money.

Mr Vella said over 20 people had been employed as a result of the outsourcing exercise, most of them in clerical grades.

"They are bringing about a situation whereby there is a distinction between different employees, creating first-class and second-class employees," he said.

Mr Vella said the next directive would be issued for the environmental inspectorate.

He said another issue was the fact workers in Mepa's environmental protection division were transferred to Hexagon House at Marsa where an odour problem affected several workers who had worked at this place over the years.

A number of formal complaints about the smells, headaches and breathing problems these were causing were lodged and, although some measures were taken to mitigate the problem, these had not been effective enough.

Mr Vella said employees were in the dark over the changes that would be made as a result of the authority's reform and a number of people were being moved from one department to another.

The UĦM was not against the reform, although it disagreed with changes made without prior consultation.

The government should give the public and employees an explanation of its plans and changes within the authority.

Contacted, a Mepa spokesman said the industrial action was affecting it from the communication aspect although applications were still being processed.

The spokesman said the sticking points were "outside Mepa's remits", adding that the regulator was awaiting developments in contacts between the union and the Corporate Services Directorate at the Prime Minister's Office.