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The Bill seeks to update the provisions of the Act relating to the quotas for the employment of persons with disability

A Bill seeking to amend Chapter 210 of the Laws of Malta, the Persons with Disability (Employment) Act (‘the Act’), has been tabled before the House of Representatives.

The Act in its current Form

Chapter 210 currently regulates several matters appertaining to the employment of persons with disability, including, the setting of a Register of Persons with Disability, as well as the obligation on certain employers that engage more than 20 employees to employ persons with disability based on a defined quota (currently 2% of the workforce).

If the quota is not respected, the competent Corporation is empowered to ask that the employer pays an annual contribution of €2,400 per person with disability that should be in employment, up to a maximum €10,000.

An offence against the Act, on conviction, gives rise to a fine (multa) not exceeding €232.94 and/or imprisonment.

Objectives of the Bill

The Bill seeks to update the provisions of the Act relating to the quotas for the employment of persons with disability, as well as to address other consequential amendments thereto.

Key amendments

Amongst the most noteworthy amendments, the Bill proposes the following amendments:

– to remove a proviso which presently states that, for the purposes of computing whether an employer engages more than 20 persons, no account is taken of any employees who are related to the employer by consanguinity or affinity up to the third degree. Therefore, going forward it is understood that all employees, whether related or otherwise, shall be taken into consideration for the purposes of such computation.

– to strengthen the wording of the Act, such that in the event of a failure to respect the quota, the competent Corporation would not be empowered to ask for payment, but rather the employer will be obliged to make an annual contribution as determined by the Corporation, of not less than €2,400 per person with disability that should be in employment, up to a maximum €10,000.

– to eliminate the capping of €10,000 for a group of companies which is duly registered with the relevant authorities.

– to empower the Minister with the ability to increase the amount of contribution or maximum amounts.

– to introduce a concession for ‘particular employers’, such as temporary work agencies, temporary service contractors, and companies with fluctuating or seasonal levels of employment. These shall be entitled, for quota calculation purposes, to establish the true size of their workforce by counting a temporary employee as a fraction of 1, in proportion to the number of days actually worked by such employee for the calendar year.

– to introduce a carve-out, whereby if an employer who does not adhere to the relevant quota, but who can prove, to the satisfaction of the Corporation that it is offering equivalent hours of work to persons with a disability through an in-service or an outsourced work arrangement or, is actually providing work to a person with a disability who is officially employed by another employer, shall be deemed to satisfy the quota.

– to clarify that recruitment efforts, work trials and discussions with entities by an employer with the aim of employing persons with a disability, shall not exonerate an employer from the payment of the contribution.

– to clarify that if a person with a disability resigns within one year of employment, that employee shall still be considered for the purposes of determining the quota for the year in which such employment commenced.

– to add that employees who are not registered as persons with disability, but who are medically certified to be within the definition of disability, may be acknowledged by the Corporation, only for the purposes of an employer’s quota calculation.

With regards to the penalties established under Article 29 of the Act, the Bill proposes to do away with the imprisonment penalty and instead stipulates that failure to pay the contribution within the time established by the Corporation shall be considered to be an offence and upon conviction, a person shall become liable to the payment of the contribution and the fine (multa). This is to be read in conjunction with the existing Article 30, which provides that where an offence against the Act or any regulations made thereunder is committed by an association of persons, every person who, at the time of the commission of the offence, was a director, manager, secretary or other similar officer of such association or was purporting to act in any such capacity, shall be guilty of that offence unless he proves that the offence was committed without his knowledge and that he exercised all due diligence to prevent the commission of the offence.

Information provided by Fenech & Fenech Advocates

Disclaimer │ The information provided on this Update does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice. All information, content, and materials available are for general informational purposes only.  This Update may not constitute the most up-to-date legal or other information and you are advised to seek updated advice

The 2021 UfM Women Business Forum discussed opportunities of digitilisation for women entrepreneurs

Malta Chamber of SMEs CEO Ms Abigail Mamo participated in the 2021 UfM Women Business Forum discussing opportunities of digitilisation for women entrepreneurs.

The discussion focused on how digital technology has impacted value chains and how it can enhance the competitiveness of women-owned SMEs and women’s bargaining power. Panelists discussed the catalyzing effect these technologies can have to provide access to finance and new markets, exploring their potential from the world of digital payments and e-commerce to innovation and business advocating.

The discussion was moderated by Sana Afouaiz, an Award-winning founder and director of Womenpreneur Initiative, and UN Women Advisor.

The launch of these investment opportunities is in line with the objectives of “Oman Vision 2040”

The Embassy of the Sultanate of Oman has informed that within the context of the Sultanate’s Vision 2040, the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion of the Sultanate of Oman has launched a new investment initiative comprises of 50 investment opportunities in the Omani industrial sector, with the aim of attracting more local and foreign investment.

In this respect, the Embassy stated that the 50 investment opportunities spread across multiple industries, including

– food products

-paper and paper products

– petrochemicals

– construction

– electrical equipment

– rubber and rubber products,

– waste disposal and management,

– metallurgy,

– mining and quarrying activities

– and the assembly of heating and cooling units

The launch of these investment opportunities is in line with the objectives of “Oman Vision 2040” that focuses on economic diversification, and the Sultanate’s industrial strategy.

In this regard, a number of incentives is granted to investors in the industrial sector like, for example, immediate issuance of licenses, customs exemption (for equipment, spare parts, raw materials), exemption of industrial establishments from income tax for five years, reduction of rents on land in the Duqm Economic Zone and the industrial zones of the Public Establishment for Industrial Estates by 25%, starting from January 2021 until the end of 2022.

More information can be found through: https://t.co/FUnOYjmMaD?ssr=true

Tech.mt is conducting a survey to gather further insight from local businesses on their perceptions towards the Internet of Things (IoT)

Previous years have seen massive attention around the Internet of Things (IoT) but have brought little knowledge of its adoption among Maltese businesses. It is evident that the IoT is paving the way for businesses to redefine the way they manufacture or design products, optimise processes, and enable enhanced sales.

To this end, Tech.mt is conducting a survey to gather further insight from local businesses on their perceptions towards the Internet of Things (IoT). More particularly, the survey investigates areas such as sectoral relevance, willingness to invest, barriers or challenges, and effectiveness on business operations. The findings of the survey will be vital in forming Malta’s national objectives for the adoption of emerging technologies such as IoT amongst the business community.

In this respect, we are reaching out to the Malta Chamber of SMEs to get the voice of their members/representations by encouraging them to participate in this survey and provide their insights towards IoT.

The survey may be accessed through the link below:

https://tech.mt/media/blog/perception-on-internet-of-things-amongst-maltese-businesses/

An Opportunity not to be missed

If there is one sure word that yields business, it is digital. Maltese businesses have only started barely scraping the surface and the untapped potential continues growing exponentially. Business are becoming more digital both for efficiency and cost, and it is well know that those businesses who do not embrace some digital transformation will become less competitive and will lose more market. But to achieve this a business needs to upskill its employees with digital skills and knowledge, and this is crucial.

Why should a business be bothered about digital skills?

The key to unlocking the digital opportunities lies in having the right skills and this is where the eSkills Malta Foundation can help businesses step up their game. What the eSkills Malta Foundation offers is completely accessible and entirely FREE of CHARGE.

Having a well-functioning eCommerce site is today a basic requirement and, to continue succeeding, businesses need much more than this today. The Maltese economy is moving towards digitalisation and will become increasingly dependent on digitalisation like never before.

A number of grants and funding opportunities are already available for businesses that take on the decision to invest. These will be increasing significantly within the coming months.

The starting point is always however developing the businesses’ capacity in terms of eSkills to be able to generate digital opportunities and identify what comes next.

Who is the eSkills Malta Foundation?

The eSkills Malta Foundation is a National Coalition made up of various representatives from Government, industry and education, who came together to contribute to the increase in digital skills and the development of the IT profession in Malta.

The Foundation in fact offers a wide variety of courses and gives access to digital skills, which can meet anybody’s need and address the full spectrum of the digital skills gap.

Amongst which, the eSkills Malta Foundation offers the following courses which are intended for businesses.

– Business Digital enablement for Business Owners

This course, developed by Ernst & Young Ltd, starts in September 2021 and targets Business Executives and Leaders.

The aim is to give exposure of the emerging technologies of Cloud, Workplace Modernisation, Effective project delivery, Using and Analysing Data as well as Process Automation.

More information and access to the registration can be found via the following link. 

– Online Digital Transformation Course

Developed by PWC, this course consists of 3 eLearning Tutorials which can be taken separately or all together should one wish.

Course content includes the subject of eCommerce comprehensively starting from a transformation point of view to online rules and effective team collaboration.

More information and access to the registration can be found via the following link.

– Elements of Artificial Intelligence

A course created by Reaktor and the University of Helsinki and seeks to answer the questions of what AI is and isn’t, how it can be applied to real-life applications, and what the implications of this technology are for companies.

More information and access to the registration can be found via the following link.

– Amazon Cloud Courses

This presents a golden opportunity to equip yourself with the tech certifications which have been declared the world’s most in-demand for three consecutive years. It’s first-come, first-served for individuals based in the Maltese islands.

Courses are separately available for technical and non-technical users and is sponsored by Melita Foundation. Last year this was a success and eSkills Malta Foundation are in the process of doing a repeat this year.

More information and access to the registration can be found via the following link.

– eSkills Digital Bootcamp 2021

The Foundation offers other various courses that you may find useful to you and your employees. Have a look at the following link.

How can you get in touch for further details?

The eSkills Malta Foundation can be contacted either by phone on (356) 21 234 710 or by email on

Employer bodies insisted for more funding to be allocated to the private sector out of the RRF

Malta Chamber of SMEs participated in discussions with the Prime Minister and Parliamentary Secretary for EU Funds Dr Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi, together with other social partners – employer representatives.

Employer bodies insisted for more funding to be allocated to the private sector out of the Recovery and Resilience Fund (RRF). Businesses must play a bigger role in the reforms towards greater resilience and need the funds to sustain their recovery following the Covid ordeal.

The plan issued by Government as to the use of RRF grants sets out six key strategic objectives.

The first is a set of projects to address climate neutrality through enhanced energy efficiency, clean energy, and a circular economy. Related to this, the second objective is to address carbon-neutrality by decarbonising transport.

Then the plan includes a strand of initiatives to foster a digital, smart, and resilient economy. The fourth objective is to strengthen the resilience of the health system. To facilitate the transformation of the economy and enable the digital and green revolutions of the coming decades, the plan then envisages measures that will enhance quality education and foster socio-economic sustainability. Finally, the sixth pillar of the plan is a renewed focus to strengthen our country’s institutional framework.

The Malta Chamber of SMEs signed a collaborative agreement  with MCAST for the introduction of a new Professional Research Doctorate (DRes) at the College. This programme of studies is the first of its kind provided at MCAST. The doctorate is a research-based EQF/MQF Level 8 qualification and focuses on the competitive behaviour of small organisations within small island states.

The announcement was made today during the signing of a collaborative agreement with the Malta Chamber of SMEs.

Statistics developed by the National Statistics Office (NSO) have identified around 30,000 small firms operational in Malta. According to the NSO, these small organisations are responsible for more than 65% of employment in Malta. The NSO’s findings highlight the importance of conducting research aimed to help small organisations grow and thrive.

Mr Paul Abela, President of the Malta Chamber of SMEs and Ms Abigail Mamo, CEO of the Malta Chamber of SMEs said, “MCAST is a very important pillar in our education system, and it is also an entity with whom we share many common goals related to how education should contribute to Malta’s economic development. Therefore, the Malta Chamber of SMEs is very pleased to be sharing another opportunity to strengthen our joint collaboration. This is one of a number of initiatives the Malta Chamber of SMEs is working on, with the ultimate objective of elevating the knowledge and competences of SMEs in Malta while encouraging small businesses not to lag and to spear ahead with their own research projects.”

Professor Joachim James Calleja, MCAST’s Principal and CEO, said, “The launch of this level 8 programme is the result of years of research and preparation. Our collaboration with industry goes beyond course provision, and not everyone might be aware of the diverse work going on at the College. Our research work aims to provide data and information, which will help industry to make evidence-based decisions. We are confident that the collaboration Malta Chamber of SMEs and the Richmond Foundation will be beneficial to the researchers and also to the growth of SMEs.”

Deputy Principal for Research and Innovation, Dr Ing. Alex Rizzo, said “through the application of mixed research methods, the course aims to unearth much-needed information on the behaviour of small organisations. Driven by grounded research, data obtained will help professionals comprehend better the complex decision making processes and behaviours within small organisations. In turn, potential findings will help researchers understand which best-practise models should be adopted by business-oriented small firms and other small organisations.”

Aimed toward Masters’ Degree holders, this DRes will run over 5-years on a part-time basis. Students must follow 4 taught modules related to advanced Research Methods MCAST Main Campus, Corradino Street, Paola PLA9032, Malta +356 2398 7100 | mcast.edu.mt during their first year.

After completion, successful candidates will progress to the main component of the DRes, namely, the research endeavour. Students must also publish three academic, rigorously researched articles.