It is not just about growth and jobs; quality of life and working conditions matter too

“We cannot measure economic growth solely through the number of new jobs created. More reference needs to be made to the quality of life index and related working conditions of employees also by shedding more transparency on their conditions.” MEP Francis Zammit Dimech made these remarks during an exchange of views on transparent and predictable working conditions in the European Union held by the Legal Affairs Committee. The legislative proposal deals with various important aspects including the probation period, parallel employment, working hours and training.

With respect to exclusivity clauses which prevent workers from working with another employer, Zammit Dimech said that whereas when conflicts of interest between two employers arise this is understandable, the right of parallel employment should remain. On the other hand he said that the situation whereby employers had to work several jobs to make ends meet had to be avoided and a good quality of life had to be ensured.

Zammit Dimech, who is a member of the Committee on Legal Affairs, said that he is currently meeting stakeholders to obtain their views in order to present them at the European Parliament. Earlier this month he met various stakeholders during a conference organised by the Nationalist Party on Workers Day and joined party leader Adrian Delia in visits held to small businesses. He has also held meetings with the Malta Business Bureau (MBB) to learn more about the views of Maltese Businesses and ensure that the directive will not shackle competitiveness especially of micro, small and medium enterprises. Zammit Dimech said that he will be also participating in a consultation session organised by MEUSAC and will be also organising a round table conference with all stakeholders in the coming weeks.