Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1539444
3 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 14 SEPTEMBER 2025 NEWS workers have a female boss immediate boss is the second lowest in Europe after Greece the EU, only 34% reported the same, dropping to just 20% in the Netherlands. Similarly, 50% of Maltese workers said their jobs fre- quently involved working at very high speeds, second only to Cyprus (54%). The findings also show that 13% of Maltese workers work more than 48 hours a week, while 17% work more than 40.5 hours. Across the EU, 20% work more than 40.5 hours a week, and 12% exceed 48 hours. The Netherlands reported the lowest share, with just 12% working more than 40.5 hours a week. Despite these pressures, 87% of Maltese workers said that having good working hours is "very important"—the highest share in the EU. Making ends meet hard for many When asked about household finances, only 19% of Maltese workers said making ends meet was "very easy," while 38% said it was "easy." A considerable 42% found it either difficult (33%) or very difficult (9%). By comparison, just 28% of EU respondents reported dif- ficulty making ends meet. In the Netherlands, 69% found it "very easy," while only 8% said it was difficult. The highest fi- nancial strain was reported in Romania, Cyprus and Greece (53–59%). The survey also found that 17% of Maltese workers fre- quently work in tiring and painful positions—lower than the EU average (22%) but still higher than the Netherlands (8%) and Finland (11%). Furthermore, 8% of Maltese respondents reported discrim- ination at work, slightly higher than the EU average of 6%. Strong ties with bosses On enthusiasm at work, 66% of Maltese workers said they feel enthusiastic most of the time, while 11% said they feel enthusiastic all the time. Only 24% rarely or never feel enthu- siastic. Across the EU, 30% rarely or never feel enthusiastic, howev- er, 27% reported being always enthusiastic. The Netherlands topped this measure, with 39% of respondents always enthusi- astic. Despite these generally posi- tive attitudes, Maltese workers reported fewer opportunities for employer-paid training. While 48% of EU workers at- tended training funded by their employer, the figure dropped to 35% in Malta. In Ireland, Aus- tria and Slovakia, more than 60% reported receiving such training. However, Maltese workers were more likely to have good personal relationships with their bosses. Some 80% said they feel comfortable discuss- ing family and personal issues with their immediate superior, compared with 70% across the EU. Yet only 27% of Maltese re- spondents felt they were always treated fairly at work, com- pared with 49% across Europe. Interestingly, around 4% of workers across the EU work alongside "cobots" (collabora- tive robots), with the percent- age in Malta dropping to 1%. Only 26% of Maltese workers reported having a female boss in 2024, down from 36% in 2021, according to a survey carried out by Eurofound