Social partners propose package to get economy going

Abstract

By the end of the first quarter of 2009, several Maltese enterprises were feeling the effects of the international financial crisis. Tourism arrivals slumped and forecasts indicated a worsening of the situation in the following months. Several companies in the manufacturing sector reduced their working week while others cut their workforce. In a bid to protect investment and save jobs, the government took various measures, including efforts to increase investment in the tourism sector and to set up a task force to design tailor-made aid programmes for specific companies facing difficulties of sustainability. By the first quarter of 2009, several companies especially in the manufacturing and tourism sectors were experiencing difficulties as a result of the global economic crisis. Three major social partner organisations, the General Workers’ Union, the Malta Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry, and the Malta Employers’ Association, presented their recommendations to the Maltese government for improving the situation in the country.