The Malta Football Players Association (MFPA)has denied claims made by the Malta Football Association that an agreement was reached between the players and clubs that full-time football players will be paid the monthly wage established by the government in its measures.
On Thursday, the Malta FA issued a statement where it stated: “The Executive Committee also took note and welcomed a resolution signed by all the 14 Premier League clubs.
“In recognising that the monthly wage figures established by the Government represent a proportionate measure, the top-flight clubs have resolved to meet these minimum payment criteria for full-time registered players.”
However, the MFPA said that it had agreed no such terms with the clubs and that discussions were still on going.
“It has come to our attention, that players are being told that an agreement has been reached and that full-time players will be paid the monthly wage figures established by the Government,” the MFPA said in a statement.
“Kindly note, that the Malta Football Players Association has not agreed to such terms and has in fact not been included in these discussions. We met twice with the clubs, but this was never mentioned.
The statement issued earlier by the Malta Football Association, may give the impression that an agreement has been reached between the employers (clubs) and the employees (players), but in truth, no such agreement has been reached.”
The MFPA said that any agreements signed by the clubs which did not involve the players in the negotiations go against the guidelines issued by the world governing body FIFA.
“In its guidelines FIFA is ‘encouraging clubs and employees to work together to find appropriate collective agreements’,” the MFPA said.
“Clubs cannot unilaterally decide on contractual matters.
“We are aware that these are hard and exceptional circumstances and have been discussing fair and equitable solutions with our member players. We will be presenting new proposals to MFA and clubs in the very near future.”
The MFPA ended its statement by asking all players to disseminate this information as much as possible to let fellow players know that the players’ union has not, on their behalf, reached any agreement with clubs yet.
"We urge players not to be pressured into signing any documents in relation to this,” the MFPA said.