Transport Malta workers are suffering injustices and discrimination, the Nationalist Party said on Tuesday, a claim immediately denied by the authority.

Shadow Minister for Transport Mark Anthony Sammut and Shadow Minister for Social Dialogue Ivan Castillo told a press conference that legal provisions on Equal Pay for Equal Work were not being observed by TM management, particularly in calls to fill vacancies and internal calls for promotions.

This was creating injustices, discrimination among workers, and breaches of the collective agreement.

Sammut said this supposedly independent and regulatory authority was being used for partisan political interests, to the detriment of honest and competent workers. These workers were being bypassed or unable to perform their duties properly because individuals who lacked competence were being placed in more senior positions than them, solely to serve the interests of the Labour Party or the minister.

He added that long-serving workers entitled to pre-retirement leave under the same conditions as civil servants were finding it difficult to get their full entitlement. He asked whether it was true that the authority had lost data and information about these workers.

Furthermore, a big number of recruitment calls were recently issued with no consistent standards.   

The inconsistencies were even more glaring in higher-grade positions, such as director roles, which had salaries higher than the prime minister’s. Certain calls for these positions require only “experience” without any formal qualifications – not even an O Level – while others required a Master’s degree.

The PN asked whether everything was tailored to suit pre-selected individuals.

Ivan Castillo said external calls to fill vacancies bypassed contractor employees, almost all Maltese, who had been performing the same roles at Transport Malta for years.

The authority is required to inform contractor employees of any vacancies it has, giving them “the same opportunity as other workers” directly employed by the authority to secure permanent employment.

He said a new Nationalist government would reform the way this authority operates to truly serve as a competent transport regulator.

In a reaction, Transport Malta said it observed all laws and regulations and did not discriminate. It said it regretted being used as a political football. 

TM said it concluded a collective agreement in 2024 which strengthened workers' conditions and gave everyone the right to be treated equally.