Thematic feature - unskilled workers

This article gives a brief overview of the industrial relations aspects of the topic of unskilled workers and unskilled work in Malta, as of February 2005. It looks at: national definitions of unskilled workers or work; the number of unskilled workers and workers in unskilled jobs, and the extent of unskilled work; employment and unemployment among unskilled workers; the regulatory framework; trade union organisation among unskilled workers; pay and conditions; recent initiatives to improve the situation of unskilled workers; and the views of trade unions and employers' organisations on the issue and its implications for collective bargaining.

In recent years, labour market developments have altered the demand for labour. Increasingly, employers are looking for adaptable workers, with more 'transversal' and 'relational' competences. The nature of skills required to be considered efficient in a job has thus evolved. In this situation, there is a growing risk of exclusion among unemployed workers whose profiles do not match the job characteristics needed, while the low-skilled or unskilled workforce is more at risk of unemployment.

In this context, in February 2005 the EIRO national centres were asked, in response to a questionnaire, to give a brief overview of the industrial relations aspects of the topic of unskilled workers. The following distinctions are used, where applicable:

(a) an unskilled job is a job which requires, for its proper execution, hardly any formal education and/or training and/or experience;

(b) a worker in an unskilled job is a worker doing such a job, irrespective of their level of qualifications or competences (especially under conditions of high unemployment, a significant share of those occupying unskilled jobs may be 'overeducated' for them, or 'underemployed'); and

(c) an unskilled worker is someone who has only the lowest level of qualifications or education (however defined).

The questionnaire examined: national definitions of unskilled workers or work, including those used or provided in laws, statistics or collective agreements; figures or estimates on the number of unskilled workers and workers in unskilled jobs, and the extent of unskilled work; employment and unemployment among unskilled workers; the regulatory framework, including any specific laws or collective agreements, and trade union organisation among unskilled workers; the pay and conditions of unskilled workers and workers in unskilled jobs, or for unskilled jobs; any recent initiatives to improve the situation of unskilled workers; and the views of trade unions and employers' organisations on the issue and its implications for collective bargaining. The Maltese responses are set out below (along with the questions asked).

Definition and extent

(a) Please provide a definition of unskilled workers or work (see distinctions above) in your country. Are there any definitions provided in laws, statistics or collective agreements?

No strict definition of unskilled work exists in Malta. The term 'unskilled work' is not used in laws. Collective agreements tend to classify occupations in a hierarchy starting from top managerial positions and going down to the lowest-paid jobs, which are often unskilled ones. The civil service collective agreement adopts a hierarchical system divided into 20 scales with related salary levels. Each scale comprises a list of categories of jobs within the civil service. The last four scales, from 17 to 20, include mostly unskilled occupations such as court messenger, bus despatcher, porter, general hand, 'watchman' and labourer. However, these scales are only a rough representation of unskilled work as they include some occupations that cannot be defined as unskilled, such as butcher and hairdresser. Collective agreements in the civil service or government-owned or -run organisations, such as Enemalta Corporation, Maltacom, theWater Services Corporation, the University of Malta and others, tend to follow a similar classification. However, in some cases, collective agreements do not include a list of occupations within each salary scale, which makes the identification of the unskilled scales even more complicated.

The National Statistics Office (NSO), the main provider of socio-economic statistics in Malta, does not use definitions of 'unskilled work' or 'unskilled workers'. A vague idea of unskilled work can be derived by looking at the workers’ level of education and at the occupational groups, which are classified according to the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO). Within this hierarchical classification comprising 10 main occupational groups, the last two, namely 'plant and machine operators and assemblers' and 'elementary occupations' are the least skilled categories.

(b) Are there any figures or estimates available on the number of unskilled workers and workers in unskilled jobs, and the extent of unskilled work. How have these figures changed in recent years - have changing skill needs or improvements in education/training systems led to a reduction in the numbers of unskilled jobs, unskilled workers and workers in unskilled jobs? Please break all figures down by gender where possible.

(c) Please provide figures on employment and unemployment rates for unskilled workers, compared with higher-skilled groups. Have unskilled workers/workers in unskilled jobs been particularly affected by industrial and company restructuring? Have new jobs created in recent years been filled by unskilled workers? Please break all figures down by gender where possible.

A compulsory school-leaving age has been in effect since 1946 while secondary education for all was introduced in 1970. This explains why the number of workers with no education is minimal - see table 1 below. Most workers have a secondary level of education (51.1% of men and 44.8% of women) and the second-largest group has a post-secondary level of education (18.2% of men and 23% of women). Female workers tend to have a higher level of education than their male peers. In fact, while the proportion of men with only primary education is nearly double that of women (17.3% and 9.5% respectively), a greater ratio of female workers have post-secondary and tertiary education. Between 2000 and 2004 there has been a decrease in the proportion of male workers with only a primary level of education (from 19.3% to. 17.3%). On the other hand, the ratio of female workers with only primary education has remained unchanged (9.5%). There has been an increase in the share of both male and female workers with post secondary and tertiary education. The most significant increase has been registered among female workers with a tertiary level of education (a 7 percentage point rise between 2000 and 2004)