▶ 28% of private sector workers fear for their jobs

▶ 47% will wait for vaccine before travelling

▶ 86% disagree with ‘safe travel corridors’

▶ 71% expect more financial assistance

▶ Majority who work from home now want to return to office

Nearly half the Maltese now want the lockdown measures to be relaxed but an overwhelming number of respondents disagree with the possibility of reopening overseas travel, according to a survey commissioned by Times of Malta.

A total of 44% of respondents agree that the government should start relaxing partial lockdown measures, a considerable increase over the previous study two weeks ago when only 26% were in agreement. A total of 47% insist the measures should not be relaxed, down from 66% two weeks ago.

And almost one in three workers employed in the private sector are fearful about job security because of the pandemic, an increase of 13% in just two weeks.

Carried out by EMCS, an advisory and market research firm, the study surveyed 500 respondents between Tuesday and Friday.

The findings come as the government has slowly started reopening certain sectors of the economy, forced to shut down because of COVID-19.

The relatively low number of new cases – before the double digit cases reported in the last three days – as well as fears about job security could have provoked an increase in the number of those who believe the partial lockdown should be eased.

The jobs situation

A total of 65% of respondents who are currently in employment do not fear losing their jobs. Nineteen per cent are fearful for their jobs, an increase of 8% over the previous survey. 

There are stark variances in responses between those working in the private sector as opposed to those in the public sector. A total 84% of those in the public sector are not fearful/ not fearful at all as opposed to 52% of those in the private sector.

The number in the public sector that are fearful has remained consistent at 5%. But a total of 28% of private sector workers now say they are fearful about their job situation.

Despite the help given so far, a total of 71% expect the government to come up with more financial assistance to support the economy.

71% expect more financial assistance

Among those in employment, 43% indicated to be working from home, 12% down from the last survey. The majority of those working from home (62%) would prefer to work from their place of work rather than remotely once the pandemic is over.

A total of 38% of those in employment indicated it was likely/most likely they would make changes to the way they work. Another 37% believe their work practices would remain the same, a quarter were unsure.

A total of 64% of those in employment would be willing to take a wage cut to help secure their jobs, with the majority (86%) willing to forgo under 10%. Such figures are consistent with previous studies.

A total of 57% of respondents said their income had remained stable over the past month, while 40% indicated their income had decreased. Of these, 19% indicated it had slightly decreased while 21% indicated that it had reduced considerably.

Almost a third said that their expenditure had not altered over the past month, 37% indicated their expenditure had decreased, while 32% indicated that it had increased.

Shopping trends

Prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, 51% of respondents indicated shopping for non-essential products once a month or more often with 18% indicating to do so twice to three times a month. Following the relaxation of restrictions, 17% of locals had gone shopping.

Among those that have not yet gone shopping, 10% indicated their likelihood of going within one month, while another 21% indicated their likelihood to go shopping for non-essential products within two months.

Such figures imply that among regular shoppers, COVID-19 is not anticipated to alter considerably their shopping habits. Once COVID is over, 40% plan on doing more shopping online than they did prior to the COVID-19 outbreak.

Nearly a quarter of respondents think that now is the right moment for people to make major purchases such as furniture and electronic devices, with another 26% saying they would do so over the next three months. A quarter indicated they were prepared to wait as long as 2021.

The travel conundrum

A review of travel attitudes indicated that last year 60% of respondents travelled at least once. Just 19% indicated their likelihood of travelling within six months once international flights resume. Conversely, 47% said they will wait until a vaccine is available prior to travelling.

The vast majority of respondents (86%) do not agree with the idea of a safe bubble that has been proposed whereby flights will be allowed to and from countries deemed to have a low number of COVID-19 cases.

Just 10% think the airport should open up this year, down 13% from the previous study. Still, 39% trust the government to decide when it is best to reopen travel, while 45% believe it should only open up once a vaccine is available.

Furthermore, the majority (77%) are not ready to make a trade-off in their decision, should this imply an increase in unemployment. Even among those that answered in the positive (23%), those that believe the airport should reopen any time soon are minimal (13%).

Other issues

A total of 47% said they are likely to change their outlook on life following COVID. Conversely, 17% indicated that it was unlikely that their outlook on life would change. Two weeks ago, this stood at 22%.

The main concerns of the pandemic continue relating to the health of their loved ones (68%). It was followed by mental health concerns (41%), physical health (38%) and financial situation (34%).

With 91% approval, the government continues to receive overwhelming support for its response to COVID-19. A total of 66% feel “extremely positive” to the way it is handling the health situation and another 25% expressed ‘positive’ views. Two weeks ago, the overall approval was 94%. Just one per cent had negative views.

Nearly three-quarters (72%) believe the government is handling the economic situation caused by COVID-19 in Malta well, with 35% expressing ‘positive’ views while 37% felt ‘extremely positive’.

Locals’ positive perception increased marginally (by 5%) when compared with the study conducted two weeks ago.

‘Government will come under serious pressure’

Stefan Mallia, partner at EMCS, said the latest data shows an upward surge when it comes to people working in the private sector fearing for their job.

“The longer the economic lockdown persists, the more inevitable the rise in this number will be. It reflects similar surveys in other European countries. This will, of course, also very much depend on whether the government intends to intervene further through direct subsidisation together with any further lifting of lockdown measures,” he said.

Another significant shift in attitude can, in fact, be seen when it comes to the lifting of lockdown measures. While previous surveys have shown a vast majority of people wanting to keep the lockdown measures in place, this latest survey shows a considerable shift towards a further partial lifting of lockdown measures, Mallia explained.

The experience of other countries... will prove to be invaluable

This shift is clearly influenced by the small numbers of COVID-19 cases that were being registered during the previous weeks and possibly by the increased fear for job security. One will now need to see how this data will react to the increase in the number of coronavirus cases over the last few days.

“What is clear is that the government continues to receive strong support for the delicate balancing act that it has been carrying out since March.”

However, as the economic pressure continues to increase, the government will come under serious pressure to consider further lifting measures or else give further direct intervention even if this becomes more unsustainable.

“The experience of other countries which are lifting lockdown measures will prove to be invaluable in also directing what we will do over the coming weeks, however it is already clearly emerging that it is much more difficult to restart an economy than it is to shut it down.”