Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1542981
The following are excerpts from the interview. The full interview can be found on maltatoday.com.mt as well as our Facebook and Spotify pages. PHOTOS: JAMES BIANCHI / MALTA TODAY What are the main challenges you will face in your new posi- tion? […] The challenges are many. They come from the progress Malta is experiencing but we should confront them through open discussions so everyone has a right to make their argument without fear. I believe everyone in this country has a contribution to make. The biggest challenges I can see right now are those associated with foreign workers and their integration, how we communicate with them, how we treat them, and how we welcome them. There are many discussions we can have on why we have certain problems that aren't being noticed and why many issues are being blamed on the same category of people. I think if everyone puts their mind to it, we can find a solution to this challenge. It won't be easy but if the discussion is a mature one, we can tackle it. You were the GWU's interna- tional secretary before be- coming president. Are Malta's problems unique to us? No, they're not. That's why we should have more open discussions on certain topics. All the problems you mentioned (rising cost of living and migrant workers) are experienced in all 27 EU member states. Not all countries are equally impacted. You mentioned the cost of living. This is being discussed openly in every country, and it's not easy to explain to people what's going on out there because they're concerned with what's happening locally. But as a full member of the EU, we cannot look at what's happening locally before discussing what's going on at EU level. What can impact us a few years from now that we should pay more attention to? The geopolitical situation is constantly changing as we speak. We're in a situation where each decision that is taken at EU level will somehow impact us. We should be politically mature as a country by opening discussions without hindrance… Before we started the interview, we mentioned the Emissions Trading System (ETS) and how it impacted Malta. In reality, this discussion was ongoing four, five years ago and we knew how we were going to be impacted. Has the time come to have more discussions locally on what is being said at an EU level? I hope we learn from these things and prioritise the topics that are important on a national level. Unfortunately, we've been full EU members for almost 25 years but many still think as though we're just an isolated island. That's not the case… When I start seeing what's being discussed on a national level, I start to scratch my head because I come from this background. Are we missing the point? I think that we are in some aspects… Let's talk about TCN employ- ees. It's clear that these work- ers have changed Malta, but it seems they've also changed the way the GWU works. Is that right? During our national congress we managed to spread a clear message on what we've been working on. Every worker has dignity, and if we don't understand this; if I can't acknowledge that my co-worker's dignity must be respected, a day will come where my dignity will be at risk. If we succeed in giving these people their dignity, it means that workers' dignity in Malta is elevated. On our work with food couriers, the GWU is the first union in the EU that managed to secure a deal on platform workers. Through the administration's work and that of Kevin Abela, who I applaud because he did a terrific job, we managed to find these people, open a discussion and figure out that they're only asking for their basic rights, which they didn't have. They were only speaking with an app and knew nothing else. This memorandum of understanding will be discussed at a European level and they will ask us how we were able to do it. How were you able to do it? The fact that we're a small country helps to spread the word. It wasn't easy. There was a lot of fear, that's why they turned their backs when it was time to take a photo. They were scared of being identified and being told that they can no longer work on the app. It involved long hours of discussions, going to shady places at night, we even gave them our building to organise feasts and celebrations, and we started building trust. Our job is built on trust… A worker from Malta, Europe, or beyond, it doesn't matter… solidarity between workers is what enables us to do our job. How have you seen this sense of solidarity weaken? It's been lost because of the consumerist race we've entered… There is massive peer pressure that I see when I look at my 14-year-old son. He tells me that his friends have this, or that, and if you don't conform, you're out of the group. The smallest community is the family, but it's the most important. When family solidarity is lost and money becomes frivolous, we stop needing each other, and this is seeping into the workplace. In the old days, we could convince workers in different companies to conduct strikes out of sympathy. This has been lost today. Today we find it difficult for colleagues to be sympathetic in the same workplace… One of the strongest elements of union work is solidarity and social justice. Where these are absent, chaos and individuality reign… NOTE: In the video, Jason Deguara erroneously references a collective agreement for food couriers. This has been changed in the text to reflect that a memorandum of understanding has been signed. 5 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 1 FEBRUARY 2026 INTERVIEW