Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1183404
11 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 10 NOVEMBER 2019 NEWS MATTHEW VELLA MALTA'S newest unions are attempting to carve away at the influence of major unions, as latest industrial figures show some positive membership fig- ures. The most impressive increase comes from the Union of Pro- fessional Educators, which started in 2017 with a mem- bership of 564, and has now climbed to 1,866 in 2019. The figure has to be seen in conjunction with the member- ship of the main teachers' union MUT (Malta Union of Teach- ers). Since 2015, membership at the MUT has hovered well above the 9,000 mark, and in 2019 reached 9,903. Over the previous years, the UPE saw membership in- creased by 1,302, while the MUT's increased by 206. The increase in unionised mem- bers, however, does not reveal how many of these members could be registered with both teaching unions. Only in 2017 when the UPE was formed, did the MUT register a decrease in membership of 229 members. Another union which could be making inroads is the recently formed Independent Bankers Union (IBU), which like the UPE falls under the umbrella of the Union Haddiema Maghqu- din (UHM). In 2019, the IBU registered 514 members, up from 493 in its first full year of operation, while the established Malta Union of Banking Em- ployees (MUBE) has remained constant at 3,000 members. By law, smaller unions with- out majority recognition on the workplace like the UPE and IBU cannot enter into negotia- tions on collective agreements. Indeed, both unions accused their main counterparts of ei- ther being in collusion with large employers or the govern- ment. Recently, the MUT and the education ministry took exception at attempts by the UPE to launch their industrial directives. And in banking, the IBU has accused HSBC of collusion with the MUBE and of prevent- ing the IBU president to repre- sent members during internal grievance or disciplinary pro- cedures. Elsewhere, Malta's two ma- jor trade unions, the General Workers Union and the UHM have had modest increases in membership over the last years, with their figures staying relatively stable from 2014 on- wards. The other two unions with more fluctuating figures are the two police unions, with the Malta Police Association now counting 1,091 members, while the GWU-affiliated Police Of- ficers Union not yet delivering its latest membership count – in 2018 it had 1,257 members. Overall, trade unions declared a total of 101,801 employees as union members, while employ- ers' associations had a slight de- crease from 9,563 members in 2018 to 9,388 in 2019, mainly due to a substantial decrease of 300 members from the Cham- ber of SMEs (GRTU). 2014/5 2015/6 2016/7 2017/8 2018/9 MUT 8856 9288 9059 9697 9903 GWU 49894 49894 50235 50903 51787 UHM 25515 25538 25607 25739 25821 MUBE 3047 3047 3050 3000 3000 MUMN 3411 3522 3699 3828 3966 UMASA 397 n/a 409 453 546 MPA 1225 1539 959 n/a POU 766 1252 1257 1257 IBU 7 493 514 UPE 564 1866 *Selected union membership figures, from DIER register Breakaway teachers' union doubles in membership Stronger in the union