Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1515804
5 NEWS maltatoday | SUNDAY • 11 FEBRUARY 2024 JAMES DEBONO jdebono@mediatoday.com.mt CAREER OPPORTUNITIES Submit your application DEPUTY REGISTRAR Aġenzija għas-Servizzi tal-Qrati Prospective candidates must be in possession of: a recognized qualification at MQF Level 5 (with a minimum of 60 ECTS/ECVET credits, or equivalent) or a recognized, comparable professional qualification, in Laws of Procedure / Criminology / Legal Procurator / Management / Leadership / Business Administration / Public Administration and/or Management / Public Policy; or a recognized qualification at MQF Level 6 (subject to a minimum of 180 ECTS/ECVET credits or equivalent) or a comparable professional qualification. Candidates must also be proficient in the Maltese and English languages (Level C1/C2 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages), both verbally and written, and be of conduct which is appropriate to the post. This post is pegged to the Court Services Agency Grade 4. At 2024 rates, this is equivalent to €22,945 per annum, rising by annual increments of €502 up to a maximum of €27,463. The post of Deputy Registrar attracts also an allowance of €3,500 per annum. Subject to satisfactory performance, a Deputy Registrar shall progress to Grade 3 and to Grade 2 after a number of years of satisfactory service. This post is on a full-time indefinite basis and is subject to a probationary period of one year. Candidates are to submit their letter of application, their qualifications and experience in a Europass Curriculum Vitae Format, a copy of their relevant scanned certificates and a valid Police Conduct Certificate by e-mail on recruitment.courts@courtservices.mt. Further information and a comprehensive description of duties can be obtained by contacting the Court Services Agency on recruitment.courts@courtservices.mt. Applications will be received till Friday 23rd February 2024 at 13:00 hrs. Eligibility JobsPlus Permit No. 291/2021 Vacancies for this post are available both in the Malta and Gozo Courts Minimum wage: Poland overtakes Malta despite 11% increase A comparison of minimum wages in Europe by the European Foun- dation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Eurofound) shows that Malta has registered the sixth highest increase in its minimum wage among member states with a stat- utory minimum wage. Following the Budget revision which raised the minimum wage over and above the normal COLA increase, Malta's monthly min- imum wage increased by 10.8%, from €835 in January 2023 to €925 in January 2024. In the study, the Maltese min- imum wage – defined at weekly frequency – was converted to a monthly rate of 4.33 weeks per calendar month. In the same timeframe, inflation in Malta in- creased by 3.7%, which was the 12th highest among these 22 member states. But while Maltese workers ben- efitted from one of the highest increases in their minimum wage, the country remains in mid-league position when it comes to the amount of money they received. Moreover, Malta has now been overtaken by Poland, where work- ers benefitted from the largest minimum wage increase in Eu- rope from €746 in 2023 to €978, a remarkable increase of 21.5%. The massive increase reflected a rel- atively high inflation rate of 6.2% has seen Poland overtake both Malta and Portugal. The minimum wage in Poland increased by a remarkable 196% from 2010 levels when its mini- mum wage was set at a miserable €330. Another eastern European country which has overtaken Mal- ta in the past decade was Slovenia, whose minimum wage increased by a staggering 109% from €647 in 2010 to €1,358. In contrast the minimum wage in Malta increased by only 43% be- tween 2010 and 2022, from €647 to €925, only overtaking Lithuana in the European rankings with a wage of just €1 higher. Malta's minimum wage remains significantly lower than that in most western European coun- tries where the minimum wage ranges from €1,260 in Spain to over €2,000 a month in Luxem- bourg (€2,571), the Netherlands (€2,183), Ireland (€2,146) and Germany (€2,049). It is also lower than that in Cy- prus (€1,000), Poland (€978) and Portugal (€957). But it remains higher than a group of 10 oth- er EU member states, all Eastern European, with the exception of Greece where the minimum wage is just €15 lower than Malta's. Edging closer to Malta is Croa- tia whose minimum wage has in- creased by a staggering 20% from €700 in 2023 to €840 in 2024. At the bottom of the ranking order one finds Bulgaria where the minimum wage amounts to just €477 and Romania where the minimum wage amounts to €663. Austria, Denmark, Finland, Italy and Sweden do not have a statuto- ry minimum wage. Malta registered the sixth highest increase in minimum wage among 22 EU states but remains stuck in 12th rank after being overtaken by Poland