The Malta Union of Teachers has registered a trade dispute with the government and the university after negotiations on a new collective agreement for lecturing grades at the Junior College failed.

In a statement, the union said it will be meeting affected members early next week to initiate industrial action.

The union said clauses that had been discussed at length for months, and which were the basis of an agreement, had been withdrawn by the university without any justification. This, it said, was unacceptable.

But, in a separate statement, the university said that originally, it had been negotiating one collective agreement to be signed with the University of Malta Academic Staff Association and MUT to cover all academic grades at both the university and Junior College, as had been the practice for previous agreements.

Following a breakdown between the two unions, it successfully negotiated and signed, in February, a new collective agreement with UMASA for academic members of staff at the university.

Following the start of negotiations with MUT over a separate agreement for academic members of staff at the Junior College, management presented improved conditions of work that include:

•    An increase in the financial package for all Junior College academic employees throughout the proposed period of the collective agreement - from 2019 to 2023; and

•    An accelerated career progression across the academic grades.

However, the MUT walked out of a meeting without discussion and due consideration to the proposals presented, which reflected the university’s obligation to retain relativity across its grading structures, the university said.

It added that it remains committed and open to meet the MUT to continue the negotiations and finalise this agreement.