Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1501675
3 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 18 JUNE 2023 NEWS NICOLE MEILAK THE Low Wage Commission has started working on revisions to the minimum wage, as promised in a 2017 agreement reforming minimum wage cal- culations. The Low Wage Commission, through the Malta Council for Economic and Social Development, has engaged E-cubed Consultants to gather data and present recommendations on the revision of the minimum wage in Malta. The commission was established following a 2017 agreement between the government and social partners to increase the minimum wage. It is chaired by David Xuereb, chairperson of the MCESD. Xuereb told MaltaToday that the commission is working steadfast to consider all data and information that will inform the recommenda- tions on Malta's minimum wage. "These recommendations will be offered to government after all studies and considerations by all the parties are made and a converged po- sition is reached." There are various union, employer and gov- ernment representatives on the commission. The General Workers Union, Union Ħaddiema Maqgħudin, Confederation of Malta Trade Un- ions, and Forum Unions Maltin are represent- ing workers' interests, while employers are be- ing represented by the Chamber of Commerce, Chamber of SMEs, the Malta Employers Asso- ciation and the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association. The government is being represented on the commission by Godfrey Pirotta, Mark Borg, and Philip von Brockdorff. As per the agreement, people earning a min- imum wage are entitled to a mandatory €3 in- crease per week upon completion of the first year of employment with the same employer, and a further €3 weekly upon completion of the second year. The agreement also stipulated that in 2018 and 2019, persons on the minimum wage will earn an extra €1 per week in addition to COLA. A study by the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Condi- tions (Eurofound) found that Malta registered the third lowest increase in its statutory mini- mum wage throughout 2022. While minimum wage in Malta increased by only 27% between 2010 and 2022, from €647 to €835, in Slovenia the minimum wage has increased by a staggering 102% from € 647 to €1,304. In the same period the minimum wage in Lithuania increased by 262% from just €232 to €840. The only countries where nominal rates have not increased between January 2022 and January 2023 was Spain, where negotiations are still on- going, and Cyprus, where a statutory minimum wage has just been introduced. A separate study from 2022, also by Eurofound, said that Malta experienced a significant decline in the real minimum wage rate due to the rising cost of living. While the minimum wage in Malta increased by 1% between January 2021 and January 2022, in real terms minimum-wage earners experi- enced a 3% drop in income when inflation is considered. JAMES DEBONO DELIMARA power station will host a battery energy storage system (BESS) that will store power harvested from solar and wind farms, to be released dur- ing peak demand periods. The project is proposed by the government company Inter- connect Malta for a 4,900sq.m site at the Delimara plant. The BESS will provide a re- liable energy source of up to 60MWh in the event of power outages, as well as mitigate the grid's variability and intermit- tency issues caused by renew- able energy sources, especially during periods of fluctuating cloud cover or wind patterns. This initiative will also stabi- lise the output from the LNG plants, reducing the variance between daytime and evening energy generation. The BESS can also provide energy that can restart the pow- er station and grid in case of a complete shutdown, a task cur- rently accomplished by burn- ing gasoil, which emits carbon dioxide. By stabilising voltage output, it can act as a back-up when the island becomes dis- connected from the Europe- an grid due to maintenance or faults. The proposed location will be to the southeast of the Electro- gas plant, adjacent to the moor- ing quay for LNG tankers. The BESS will complement a second Malta-Sicily intercon- nector project, with the specific battery type and converter tech- nology yet to be determined. Interconnect Malta said it had thoroughly assessed alternative locations across the Maltese islands but said Delimara was the most suitable due to its am- ple space to accommodate the necessary components of such a facility. Furthermore, Enemal- ta already has ownership of the site, and its location in Delimara aligns with its dedicated ener- gy-related use. The Environment and Re- sources Authority has deter- mined that the proposal is unlikely to have a significant environmental impact, which means no environmental im- pact assessment will be re- quired. Low Wage Commission kicks off work on minimum wage revision Delimara to get battery energy system back-up 'BESS' will store renewable energy from the sun and wind inside Delimara, to provide a secure source of power during outages MCESD chairperson David Xuereb said the Low-Wage Commission will consider all data and seek convergence between unions and employers before making recommendations to government