Malta’s trade union movement has welcomed the government’s acceptance of trade union membership for police, after its long campaign for these rights. However, the General Workers’ Union was disappointed by the decision to simply transform the Malta Police Association (MPA) into a trade union because this limits membership to the police, and leaves other branches of the security services without a union. It is also feared that the MPA will still be governed by the Police Act.
Background
Members of Malta’s security services such as the police, soldiers, civil protection workers and prison guards are banned from joining a trade union by the Employment and Industrial Relations Act (215Kb PDF) (EIRA), and by other legislation governing their terms of employment. However, Malta’s two largest trade unions, the General Workers’ Union (GWU) and Union of United Workers (UHM), have been pressing the government to give these workers the right to join a trade union for many years (MT1005029I).
Government acceptance
In November 2011, Maltese Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi said he was in favour of allowing police to join a trade union. While this was welcomed by the GWU, it said it would insist on other security force workers eventually being given the same rights. The union noted that Joseph Muscat, leader of the opposition party Partit Laburista (PL), had declared that his party would grant police union membership if in office. However, all parties are agreed that if police are given the right to join a trade union, they would not be given the right to strike.
GWU criticism
Subsequently, Home Affairs Minister Carm Mifsud Bonnici confirmed that the Malta Police Association (MPA) would be recognised as a trade union. The move was welcomed by the MPA, which has been lobbying for this change since 2005. However, the GWU criticised the arrangement, because in practice this means that the MPA will be transformed into a house union since membership of the MPA is obviously open only to the police force. This means that officers’ freedom of association will therefore continue to be restricted, and personnel from other branches of the security services cannot join the MPA and enjoy the benefits of union representation. The GWU said it would report the case to the European trade unions which represent members of both the police and the armed forces.
Registration
Until now, the MPA has been governed by the Police Act which states that this is the only professional representative organisation that officers may join, and under the act all branches of the MPA have had to be registered with the Commissioner of Police. If implemented, the recognition of the MPA as a union would mean that it would instead have to be registered with the Registrar of Trade Unions and its activities would be governed by the EIRA industrial relations legislation rather than the Police Act. It would no longer be treated as a corporate body, but as an association of persons capable of making contracts, and of suing and being sued.
Commentary
The GWU fears the transformation of the MPA will be a cosmetic exercise unless the Association is also freed of its obligation to act in accordance with the Police Act. Otherwise, in the event of conflict between the provisions of the Police Act and industrial relations legislation, the Police Act may take priority. This would maintain the present state of affairs and, in practice, continue to deny police officers a right of freedom of association.
Saviour Rizzo, Centre for Labour Studies