Education Minister Clifton Grima refused to disclose figures on Friday after the teacher’s union described the government's proposed wage increases as “insulting”. 

Grima was taking questions from the press hours after the Malta Union of Teachers ordered a nationwide strike on November 27 over a pay dispute. It also said that it would be announcing a series of directives to its members, set to come into effect next Monday. 

According to Graham Sansone of the Union of Professional Educators, the proposed increase to teachers' wages could be as low as two per cent. 

Grima, however, brushed off the suggestion when asked but resisted giving a figure on how much the government is offering to raise educators’ pay when pressed by journalists. 

"I will not be mentioning figures right now, it would be premature when there are discussions between two parties to talk of numbers in public. Maybe that will happen in the future," he said.

He added that what the government is offering is “sustainable, just and will lead to a substantial increase” as promised in the Labour Party’s electoral manifesto. 

Grima said he was confident that the government would be able to reach an agreement with the union as it had done with other professions. Negotiations for a new collective agreement with educators began in December 2022.

“Let’s not let these directives of the prospect of industrial action be used by some as an attack on the profession,” he said. 

“Educators have our full respect and we certainly will be assuring that they are given what corresponds to the importance of their profession.”

The November 27 strike is expected to impact primary and secondary schools as well as sixth forms run by both the Church and the State. The University of Malta's Junior College will not be affected. 

MUT president Marco Bonnici earlier said that the government had "broken its promise" to provide educators that it would improve their working conditions and told teachers that supporting the strike could determine the future of the education sector. 

Government has no respect for teachers - PN 

In a statement on Friday, the PN said it was disappointed at the government’s lack of political will to better conditions and salaries for educators and said that it was clear that Prime Minister Robert Abela and Grima aren’t interested in coming to the negotiation table. 

This, they added, is despite the government promising “significant betterment” in educators’ pay. The government’s attitude towards teachers is proof that it has no respect for the profession because, despite months of negotiations, it was not able to reach an agreement with the MUT, to the point that a strike has been called. 

“If the government truly believes in educators, students and the national education system, it would attempt to reconcile instead of creating a crisis that leaves the union no choice but to strike and call for directives,” the statement said.