Tradespeople will now be included under Malta Developer’s Association’s (MDA) umbrella in hopes of creating “a fair level playing field,” MDA president Michael Stivala announced on Friday.
The addition of tradespeople to the MDA roster is a step forward in the association’s objective to represent the entire construction industry as they currently represent over 600 developers across Malta and Gozo, Stivala said.
Stivala explained that although construction is one of Malta’s most important industries, the current landscape is known to have issues as clients pay for a specific service but end up with work that is either not up to scratch or is over the promised schedule and budget.
Health and safety regulations are not followed as employees and workers lack training opportunities, Stivala said, while others struggle to find third-party insurance packages.
The MDA, he said, has recognised these problems and will be offering solutions such as “special insurance packages” to support their members.
He highlighted that although many tradespeople are in direct competition with each other, the way forward is to “work together because, at the end of the day, everyone profits.”
“Once we join forces, we have the strength to improve things.”
The move also includes a partnership with checkyourtraders.com, a crowd-sourced review-based business that allows users to search for local tradespeople and check reviews and scores left by others who have used their services.
Set up by British expat Lauren Rampley, the website is free to access for clients as it allows them to look up a tradesperson by name, see reviews left by previous clients, or else look up a specific service – such as a plumber or tiler – and view recommended tradespeople along with their overall rating.
Checkyourtraders.com also offers a verification process for tradespeople that aims to promote accountability within the industry as the average consumer is able to make an educated decision based on user reviews and experiences instead of relying on easily missed word of mouth.
Stivala said that actions such as this will only help up the standard of the construction industry and make it more attractive to foreign investors.
He also pledged to lobby for tradespeople to be issued official licenses by the government as an opportunity to grant further verification and authenticity to workers.
Checkyourtraders.com has verified 1,500 tradespeople, some of whom inherited their artisanship from previous generations.
If a client files a complaint, the tradespeople are given a fortnight to rectify the situation, otherwise, their negative rating is published online.