A new Nationalist Party government would remove tax on the first €10,000 earned from part-time or overtime work, Opposition Leader Bernard Grech said on Workers’ Day.
He said that workers struggling with the cost of living deserve help, not punishment.
During his speech at the PN’s event on Thursday, Grech said that the government should not punish those who need to work more to survive.
Grech said that 1 May commemorates two important occasions; Workers’ Day and the 21st anniversary of Malta’s membership in the European Union.
“When we speak today about the day Malta became a member of the EU, we recall a historic decision that brought certainty, rights, and opportunities for every worker, student, and family,” Grech said.
He said it was the Nationalist Party that led this journey with vision and courage to give the Maltese people the same opportunities as other European peoples.
“Today, 21 years later, the challenges have changed, but the principles remain: we work to ensure Malta is part of a fairer, more competitive, and more social Europe,” Grech said.
He said that Malta is a Republic founded on work, which is enshrined in the Constitution.
Grech said that Malta is built on its workers and the Nationalist Party honours all those who work with dedication and love for what they do.
He said that life should be one of dignity, that work should be of quality, and that the conditions created should lead to a life of balance, opportunity, and respect, hence the PN’s slogan, Work, Life, Quality.
“We need to see how to improve our working conditions, but we also believe that work is only one part of life, and to improve the life of the worker, we must improve not just their job conditions, but also their overall quality of life,” Grech said.
It must be ensured that all workers are protected and that work conditions are safe, he added.
“We need to do this through action, not just words. Others, who claim to be the workers’ party, have said many things, but never followed up with action,” Grech said.
Grech said that for three elections, the Labour government promised equal pay for equal work, that contractor employees would be paid the same as government workers, “but it’s only ever been words.”
He said that just this week, the UĦM (Union Ħaddiema Magħqudin) had to declare an industrial dispute because the government failed to honour its promise that contractor workers would be paid equally to government employees.
“With us, it is different. With us, you know where you stand. With us, if you do the same job, you get the same pay. There are no first-class and second-class workers. With us, all workers have value and are treated fairly. We should not divide our workforce; we should support them all,” Grech said.
He said that workers must be given every form of support to fight and cope with the biggest issue facing Maltese and Gozitan workers today, the cost of living.
Grech said workers in Malta and Gozo need real solutions to help them get by, and the Nationalist Party is talking about solutions.
“We spoke and even tabled a motion in Parliament to ensure the full COLA (Cost of Living Adjustment) is given and not taxed, so that workers and pensioners benefit in full,” Grech said.
He continued that the PN proposed the provision of tax credits to SMEs and businesses so they can absorb wage increases without raising prices and setting up a national fund for importers and exporters to reduce import/export costs, which contribute to the cost of living.
The PN also proposed the shifting of the economic model from one based on disproportionate population growth to one based on investment in new and innovative sectors that offer better-paying jobs for Maltese and Gozitan workers.
Grech said that while the Nationalist Party proposed solutions to help families, the so-called workers’ party voted against providing support.
“While we proposed removing tax on the COLA increase, they voted against it. While we wanted to help employers avoid raising prices, they voted against it. While we wanted to help importers and exporters, they voted against it. While we urged the government to change direction and shift the economic model, they voted against it,” Grech said.
He continued that while the PN offered solutions, others (government), in Parliament, removed its proposals and instead passed an amendment praising itself.
“While people are struggling with the cost of living, we have a government so out of touch with your reality that it is focused on self-congratulations rather than on helping you,” Grech said.
He said that this week, another statistic, one published by the government itself, showed that the number of people at risk of poverty has increased.
“It is not us saying this, it is the government admitting it. Unfortunately, the number of people at risk of poverty has increased. The government told us that last year 92,000 people were either living in poverty or at risk of it,” Grech said.
Grech said that the PN recognised that for many, the problem is so severe that they cannot make ends meet even with a full-time job.
“Many people have to work longer hours or take up extra jobs just to get by. The government should not punish those who need to work more to survive,” Grech said.
He then pledged that a new Nationalist Government will remove tax on the first €10,000 earned from part-time or overtime work.
“We want to reach a point where we work to live, not live to work. That is why we want to help people balance their time so they can have time for their family, for rest, and for themselves,” Grech said.
He said the PN believes workers should be able to live lives where family, mental health, and personal time are respected.
Among other things, Grech said the PN is proposing that parental leave and maternity/paternity leave be extended to a full year, so that parents can spend more time with their children during the crucial early months of life, and to help address Malta’s low birth rate.
“But life goes beyond just work-related matters. We must ensure that our environment is truly clean, healthy, and sustainable,” Grech said, recalling how in 2013, government said the environment would be priority, calling this, “a joke.”
Grech said that the government itself has received half the fines issued by the Environment and Resources Authority (ERA) for environmental destruction over the past 12 years.
“And then they expect us to believe the environment is a priority for them? This government does not care about the environment you live in,” Grech said.
“This is a government that does not care about you. The government created an agency supposedly to promote more open spaces, yet now it is giving up green land, like in Żurrieq which is currently used by farmers, to be developed,” Grech said.
He said that government says one thing and does another, while the PN wants to take action, not just talk.
“We want to enshrine in the Constitution that every person in Malta and Gozo has the right to live in a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment,” Grech said.
He said that the country needs to move away from a focus on quantity and toward a focus on quality in every sector.
He said that quality means ensuring that things are done sustainably for the generations that come after, that is why there is the need for an economic model in which 70% of businesses do not feel that the country is heading in the wrong direction.
“The present economic model exploits foreigners who come from abroad and are paid low wages to compete with the Maltese, and it exploits the Maltese who must accept low wages to compete with what the others are being paid,” Grech said.
He said the country needs economic model that unites people, not turns them against each other, a model based on investment in new economic sectors, creating thousands of quality jobs.
“We will ensure that there is a reskilling program so that Maltese workers can acquire the skills needed in a modern, ever-advancing technological world, and give our support to businesses to invest in new technology so they can compete in today’s globalized world,” Grech said.
During his speech, Grech also paid tribute to the memory of the late Francis Zammit Dimech, who he said remained in service of the people till his last breath.