Category: Archive – 2015

Deputy Prime Minister Louis Grech and Parliamentary Secretary responsible for EU funds Ian Borg have this morning officially launched the 2014-2020 Operational Programmes for Malta. This following, what has been described as a very lengthy and intense negotiation phase with the European Commission.

This events marks the start of the implementation phase of the funds, and as a result we will start seeing the initial calls being pre-announced with immediate effect.

A total of €850M in funds is available for the coming 6 years for the country to achieve its vision as well as its EU 2020 targets.

€53M of such funds are specifically earmarked for SMEs and will include the investment in facilities targeted at businesses such as business parks and incubation centres as well as financial incentives for businesses.

In addition to this SMEs will also be benefitting from increased access to finance through the recently announced SME initiative. There are €15M in funds available to facilitate finance however this is still at early stages and more tangible information will be available later on this year.

The funds are divided into two programmes. The first programme OPI aims to further economic development, improve environmental sustainability and invest in a more social inclusive society. The second strand of funds OPII aims at investing in human capital to create more opportunities and promote the well being of society.

How will the funds be spent?

OPI

• Investing in research, technological development and innovation
• Consolidating investment within the ICT sector (incl incentives for e-commerce)
• Enhancing Malta’s competitiveness through investment in SMEs (incl business parts and financial incentives)
• Shifting towards a low-carbon economy (€57M for the RES in financial incentives for the domestic and private sector)
• Protecting our environment – investing in natural and cultural assets (incl tourism related incentives)
• Sustainable Urban Development (incl regeneration of public spaces)
• Shifting towards a more low-carbon transport sector (incentives for green transport)
• Investing towards a more socially-inclusive society (Health and Sport)
• Developing our future through education, training and lifelong learning (incl. Vocational Education and Training)
• Investing in a more environmentally-friendly society (Waste management, recycling, reducing the volume of waste going to landfills, waster quality, etc)
• Investing in TEN-T Infrastructure (Road projects)

OPII

• Investing in the employability and adaptability of human capital (employment incentives, job seekers and inactive people, family friendly measures and youth guarantee initiatives)
• Towards a more inclusive society (discrimination, vulnerable individuals, health and care)
• Investing in people through education, training and lifelong learning (early school leaving, illiteracy, enhance educational experience, tertiary education, update study programmes to meet the needs of industry)
• Building the institutional administrative capacity (Government, local councils and judicial reform)

GRTU will keep its members informed as the new funding opportunities become available.

GRTU President Paul Abela and GRTU Deputy President Philip Fenech attended this week’s business breakfast organised by The Malta Business weekly which was addressed by Opposition leader Dr Simon Busuttil.

During his speech Dr Busuttil mentioned that in the harsh international economic recession, Malta’s economy consistently registers the best economic growth rates along with Germany. For this to continue it is essential that businesses continue to compete and invest to get new customers. This will also allow the country to preserve its social model which combines Malta’s economic growth with the living standards and work conditions of the Maltese people.

On this matter GRTU President Paul Abela commented that the economy is still growing due to the fact that it is based on solid foundations, which did not occur in the last 2 years alone. This growth was nurtured due to the development in certain sectors such as the financial, gaming, aviation and the tourism industry. GRTU hopes that we will continue to register growth in the future, as only through growth can we create jobs and improve our living standards.

Mr Abela continued by stating that GRTU has been calling on the Authorities to address the problem of Access to finance for Small businesses. It is of concern that the Central Bank reported that in the previous year they witnessed a decline in lending to SMEs. Another problem that must be tackled is the high interest rates and bank charges that our banks are charging to local businesses. This is unacceptable due to the fact that the European Central Bank lending is 0.05 per cent and in Malta it is between 4 to 6 per cent. GRTU hopes that good reasoning will prevail, and the formation of the Development Bank and the SME initiative will also solve part of these problems.

Another issue mentioned by Mr Abela is the rent law which was passed in the past with both parties agreed to this law. GRTU feels that this law is harming family businesses and if it is not addressed and amended this could lead to Malta   losing most of the small business that will have their rents terminated by law.

GRTU President Paul Abela concluded his intervention by providing the results of GRTU retail survey which was launched earlier this year which highlighted that retail trade is decreasing. This can be due mainly to the results that online shopping is increasing more than 25 per cent. We do not suggest that this trend should be stopped but on the contrary we are trying to convince our members to better equip themselves by offering and investing in this service. It is also evident that the retail sector is being affected by unfair competition entering our island through imports by sea from Italy. GRTU has continuously urged the Government to intervene, and put in place a system that imposes the payment of the same taxes and obligations our members have to pay.

GRTU is participating in ETC’s initiatives aimed at integrating persons with special needs in order to support efforts of inclusion at the work space. The initiative which GRTU is taking part in is referred to as Sheltered Employment which involves tasks being undertaken by this group of individuals at ETC premises, or even if necessary on-site, and under the supervision of a qualified job coach. A group of six individuals have been offering their services at no cost to GRTU. This can also similarly be an opportunity that other employers take up.

It is an experience that is also providing both staff and public with a direct experience of understanding the skills of each person that irrespective of one’s situation can contribute positively to the workplace. As can be witnessed through the   following picture, any mass postal mail postal mail postal mail correspondence that you as GRTU members, have received in the past weeks, was prepared by this team of individuals.                                        

Apart from back-office work, other individuals under this program have also provided services to GRTU through telephone call tasks, office work and inputting of data. This service is not only a positive corporate social responsibility exercise that provides opportunities for inclusion and employment, but it is also free of charge. We therefore encourage interested members to contact GRTU if they are interested in an undertaking such positive experiences within their own company.

You are requested to contact GRTU on or 21232881/3.

The following is an overview of ETC’s initiatives in this sector which may be of interest.

Sheltered Employment Training

Sheltered Employment Training activities have the overall objective of enabling persons with a disability to easily integrate into the labour market through the simulating of a work environment. Through these activities 25 job coaches we will be assisting 150 persons with disability acquire employment skills. The Sheltered Employment Training Facilities is temporarily set up at Mtarfa (but will later move to Msida). However if the work cannot be outsourced to be done at the facility and if the situation so allows, the Persons with Disability can carry out the employment training tasks at the employers establishments (always under the eyes of the job coaches).

During the tenure of the project no payment is made for the work carried out as the employers would be providing the employment training opportunity. Of course if during the training itself the employer identifies a person or persons that he would be interested to offer regular employment to, the persons can leave the project and the supported employment model from the Bridging the Gap stage will kick in.

Supported Employment

ETC runs a pre-employment programme called Job Bridge. It is targeted for young persons with intellectual disability between the ages of 16 to 25 and who have completed compulsory education. Trainees will participate in a structured programme that caters for the acquisition of skills in three main areas ‘Employability’, ‘Social’ and ‘Independent Living’. During this programme trainees will be provided with various job tasters and will also participate in on-the-job experiences. By the end of the programme, through the supported employment method, the trainees should be ready to actively join the labour market. 

The Supported Employment Method means that following the completion of the vocational profile stage (where what the client wishes to do and is capable of, is established) the client will be first placed on a job taster (this is usually a few hours on a particular day. No payment is involved for the employer).  If this proves to be successful we will move on to the work experience phase (a number of hours for a small number of weeks.  No payment is involved for the employer).  In this phase the client is given a longer opportunity to consolidate on his wish to work in a particular occupation.  If the employer knows that there is a vacancy in the said occupation and is pleased with the output of the client ETC can kick in the Bridging the Gap Scheme. 

During this Scheme the client will attend the place of work for a number of hours for a number of weeks and will receive remuneration from ETC – once again there will be no direct cost to the employer.  Finally there will be formal employment, usually on part-time employment basis.  Employers employing a registered disabled person are exempted from paying their national insurance contribution for three years.

For the purpose of supported employment ETC would be after a task or a number of tasks that the person can engage in rather then a full occupation.  As part of the service ETC can also assist in identifying the tasks.  Moreover during all this process the client will be assisted by a job coach to make sure that the client knows well the work he needs to carry out.  The Job Coach also supports the employer by firstly being responsible for the on-the-job training of the client and secondly to address any concerns that the colleagues of the person to be placed, may have on the person’s ability to carry out the work assigned to him.  Once the job coach is satisfied that the client can work on his own without the job coaches supervision, s/he will leave the employer’s workplace.  If however something comes up and the employer needs the services of the job coach, the employer would still have access to the job coach.

Mainstream Recruitment Services

This is the normal recruitment service we offer with the difference that if the client is a person with disability, before formal employment we can make use of the Bridging the Gap Scheme. Employers employing a registered disabled person are exempted from paying their national insurance contribution for three years.

Other Services

There a number of other similar services. These may also include rehabilitated former substance users and former prison inmates.

Pharmacies are currently faced with a request by the Authorities to increase opening hours so that the consumer would be better served. GRTU has found that not all pharmacies agree with such a request however the absolute majority are ready to increase their opening hours as long as this is comprehensible and where they feel it will make a significant contribution to giving a better service to their clients.

A survey commissioned by Browns Pharmacy has shown that consumers are very satisfied by the level of service offered to them by the Pharmacies. Understandably however, when asked if they would like the service to be extended, respondents replied in the positive.

Pharmacies that are against extending their opening hours mostly are concerned on the viability of opening during extended hours, and this is more pronounced in certain areas of Malta.

Finding a happy medium between the requirements of consumers and the realities of pharmacies is not an easy task. The pharmacies however agreed that the roster could be extended to cover Saturdays, Sundays and Public Holidays, including Christmas and New Year, so that pharmacies that are on duty, according to the roster, would open the extended hours. In addition to this and to increase the viability of opening on extended hours, all pharmacies, including those within Special Designated Areas would fall within the roster. In order for the initiative to make sense the districts would need to reorganized so that consumers are reached better and we decrease the chances of overlapping.

CEDEFOP (EU agency for Vocational Education and Training – VET) presented initial findings of a study conducted upon the Maltese system for apprenticeships at an MCESD meeting last Monday 2nd March 2015. Education Minister Hon. Evarist Bartolo described the importance of further linking the worlds of education and work together. He highlighted a number of challenges such as the vocational training is still perceived as second-class to academic education in some sectors and that skills gaps are resulting in Maltese workers not having the skills sets to respond to the jobs necessary in our economy. An overhaul of the apprenticeship system was necessary to instil a new sense of quality in the system.

GRTU sees apprenticeships as key to building a stronger labour force equipped with the soft skills necessary for work. This is coupled with practical training and preparing learners with the necessary mind-frame to be more employable and more productive at a faster rate when entering full employment. The study presented by CEDEFOP Director Prof James Calleja and their Research Expert Ramonda David Craescu also showed that the strongest economies in Europe and worldwide, give strong emphasis to VET and apprenticeships. Career guidance, career-management skills, matching and coaching, and other support systems for learners tied with incentives, including financial, to employers, were described as key during CEDEFOP’s presentation.

GRTU commented that the benefits are clear for both education and employment – the student and the entrepreneur, both in macro- and micro- terms. Nevertheless it is clear that this is not being transcended in practice as only small percentages of students are engaged in such work-based learning and only small percentages of businessmen are involved in these opportunities. There is cross-sectoral agreement on the usefulness of apprenticeships but is there cross-sectoral cooperation, the GRTU asked at the meeting.

The benefits have to be communicated and translated in terms which the entrepreneur will see them as beneficial to him. A structured method is necessary but it has to be flexible enough to respond to the needs and realities of small businesses and even moreso, micro-enterprises. In this attempt to renew the quality and trust in the apprenticeship system, GRTU urged that social partners have to be placed as part of the system to gain the necessary trust and quality envisaged.  All learning needs to be given value through a credit system which explains what learning and training goals have been achieved and this needs to be tied to the pending occupational standards being developed. GRTU also commended internships at higher levels in the form of extended apprenticeships at the higher levels of education. GRTU concluded that lecturers, tutors and trainers need to be in touch with the world of work. Systems that link trainers with the labour market have to be put in place in order to ensure that the trainers keep in touch with the ever-evolving methods, technologies and realities at the workplace which will then be transcended onto their trainees.

CEDEFOP concluded the presentation by announcing that a conference on the subject is envisaged to be held in the coming weeks where the full study will be presented. Apprenticeships can give the much-needed value added to our education system. However it must be sustained by a system of trust.

GRTU together with NCHFE and MCCAA has met representatives from sectors covering the wider picture of the Motoring Industry with the aim to develop the said standards by the third quarter of 2015.

A main feature of occupational standards is that they link qualifications to the requirements of the labour market. The rationale for developing occupational standards is the strong assumed link between employment requirements and education when qualifications are related to occupational standards.

Occupational standards specify what main jobs involve, describing the professional tasks that need to be undertaken as well as the activities and the typical competences required for particular occupations. These standards are therefore classifications and definitions of the main jobs skills.

Mr Richard Curmi, Senior Manager at the Permanent Secretary’s Office within MEDE earlier on this year met GRTU representatives from the following sectors; sprayers panel beaters, auto electricians, maintenance and repair, roadwork  assistance, vehicle sales and other occupations within the sector. Mr Curmi explained how these standards serve different functions, for designing training curricula; in providing certification; and in helping employers appreciate the skills within their workforce and in recruitment. Occupational standards therefore involve the identification of the knowledge, skills and abilities required for people to carry out certain jobs. This should result in solidifying the quality and excellence of services within the sector through recognizable benchmarks of competences for different job roles. It will also serve as an opportunity to give value to those who have learned their skills and competences through life and the world of work without having had any formal certification.

GRTUhas throughout 2012,worked with NCFHE  in developing occupational standards for Motor Damage Assessorsand will continue to work with other sectors. The Malta Chamber of Motor Assessors (MCMA) within GRTU, represents more than 20 Maltese motor vehicle assessors, who are responsible for a range of activities particularly: Vehicle damage assessment; mechanical failures; vehicle fire investigations; electrical failures; expert witness; repairer assessment; car fleet surveys; conciliation and arbitration.

Mr Curmi said that these standards serve as a benchmark for skills to be assessed and indicate the best working practices and these need to be regularly updated to remain relevant.

A second meeting is scheduled for the first week of June to continue to establish Occupational Standards for the Motoring Industry. Further information can be obtained from Ms Carmen Borg tel: 21 230459 or on 79 232884.

1. Mobilising private investment, €315 billion over the next three years (EFSI)
2. Making that investment reach the real economy (through Project Pipeline)
3. Improving the investment environment in Europe

GRTU has raised an issue with the Director General of Customs and the Commissioner for Inland Revenue related to sudden change in procedures implemented by Customs which has negatively affected enterprises, especially those importing goods from outside the EU and subject to pay duty charges.

Customs explained to the GRTU that they found themselves in a position where certain cheques were not being honoured and currently the law does not give customs effective ways to seek redress, because customs would have already released the goods, and the liability falls on the cashier that would have accepted the cheque in question. A recent such case has led to Customs changing policy with immediate effect to one where they will no longer accept cheques that are not backed by a bank guarantee and where the payment is required for the immediate release of the goods.

A number of other payment options are possible but these include cash, which presents its own risk and when the goods are released to a cargo haulier (burdnar) and it is not advisable for the cargo haulier to run around with such cash, as well as cheques and differed payments but these have to be backed by a guarantee. GRTU feels the options pose an additional cost and bureaucratic burden on enterprises, especially the smaller enterprises.

GRTU has insisted with Customs that they should start accepting electronic payments and will be presenting a set of proposals as to how the GRTU feels the Act regulating such instances, which is currently limiting us from enacting alternative measures, be amended.