Author: SME Chamber

GRTU Hospitality and Leisure
Division President Philip Fenech this week met the police together with the
Paceville night entertainment business operators. The meeting was held with
police Assistant Commissioner Raymond Zammit. He introduced police Superintendant
Carmelo Bartolo, who is new to this district.

During the meeting
arrangements for the coming two weeks of celebrations were discussed. This is
the busiest time for this industry. More coordination between the managers and
staff of establishments and the police was encouraged for smoother operations
of the area of Paceville.

Traffic management was
one of the main subjects discussed. Both the GRTU and the police appealed for
people to try to reduce traffic congestion as much as possible through car
pooling and the use of buses as well as other types of transport that would
diminish the amount of vehicles on the road.

GRTU also fully endorses
the zero tolerance for drinking and driving and encourages people going out to
follow the designated driver principle.

Philip Fenech personally
appealed to people to plan ahead so that they can be at their chosen spot early
to avoid disappointment as some travelers might be caught in traffic jams as
this sometimes was the case in previous years.

Prime
Minister Joseph Muscat met MEUSAC core group members, amongst which GRTU, where
he gave an introduction and Malta's views on the issues that will be discussed
during the next European Council meeting that would be held in the following
day and gather the views of civil society on these important issues.

The
topics on the Council's agenda are the European Common and Security Policy, the
Economic and Monetary Unions, Economic and Social Policy and the report of the
Task Force on Energy and the Mediterranean.

Dr
Muscat spoke at length on the issue of immigration and that there was some
positive impetus especially on proposals related to failed asylum seekers would
be returned to their country of origin. He also said that migrants who landed
in Malta whose status was dubious,  and
who may hail from extremist groups, could pose a security threat to both Malta
and the EU.

The
Prime Minister also mentioned a very important issue that Malta was concerned
with related to contractual arrangements the EU was proposing that each member
state would enter into. It proposed that instead of issuing specific country
recommendations it would bind the specific Member State (MS) to the specific
recommendations contractually. The reasoning behind this was mainly that the specific
recommendations for some MS stayed the same year after year and this would
commit the MS further to make the necessary changes. Dr Muscat however said
Malta, and not just Malta is concerned because first of all on a matter of
principle a contract should be something that two parties agree to and not
something dictated and on certain subject the MS would need more flexibility
and time. He gave an example with the pension system which was something easy
to sort.

Dr
Muscat also touched on issues of solidarity, especially financial solidarity
and where would these funds come from and on issues of sovereignty saying that
Malta had no problem with more EU involvement but suggested the EU leaves
Member States to decide on certain issues, such as tax-related ones for
instance.

Present
for the meeting where GRTU President Paul Abela and EU Desk Coordinator Abigail
Psaila Mamo. Mr Abela was first one to intervene and address the Prime
Minister. Mr Abela thanked the prime Minister for the commitment he has shown
to civil society by being there and by once again confirming the Civil Society
Funds given to us as civil society which was essential for us to maintain our
work at EU level and communicate the EU to our members.

Mr
Abela also spoke about access to finance and mentioned the situation of the
banking sector and that we were lucky during the crises and that we appreciate
that Government has expressed its commitment to investigate certain practices
that we feel constitute an abuse of dominant position. In line with the
investigations going on around all the EU the Maltese Government will also
carry out its research. Mr Abela also called on the Government to establish a
development bank.

Mr
Abela told the Prime Minister that the environment should be given due
importance and the best opportunities should be sought out for the betterment
of SMEs and there were many opportunities. GRTU is doing its part leading its
members in this area and even issued a specific scheme to better the service
the consumer if given by the sector.

Finally
Mr Abela augured the Prime Minister the best of luck for the meeting ahead and
that he would get the best deals for Malta.

The
aim of this consultation is to understand stakeholders' views on a range of
certification actions which could be undertaken in order to tackle the problem
of waste shipments out of the European Union to non-OECD countries if the waste
is not treated in an environmentally sound manner.

The results of the
consultation will be used as one of the bases for formulating EU policy in this
area.

To submit and find  more information on this consultation, kindly
follow this link: 

http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/policies/raw-materials/public-consultation-waste/index_en.htm

One of the
benefits emanating from an employment contract to cater for periods of illness
during an employment relationship is sick leave. It is a form of financial
solidarity with a member of staff at the workplace, a recognition that a sick
employee will not be performing at normal levels if he goes to work, which in
certain occupations may be a safety concern, and also a basic precautionary
measure to avoid potentially harmful exposure to other members of staff in the
case of certain diseases, e.g. infections.

Definition

Sick
leave is defined as leave granted to the employee whenever an employee presents
a medical certificate certifying incapacity for work (Minimum Special Leave
Entitlement Regulations). So in essence, it is to be granted when a medical
opinion is presented that an employee is unfit for work.

The
statutory sick leave entitlement varies considerably being of a minimum of 2
weeks with full pay in sectors not covered by Wage Regulation Orders (WROs) to
varying higher entitlements in sectors covered by WROs.

NSO data
for 2011 suggest a figure of an average utilisation of 8 days sick leave per
employee in the public sector and 3.5 days per employee in the private sector.
This is a considerable variance in utilisation rates, in part because the data
on the private sector is based on Social Security statistics which exclude the
first three days of sick leave. It merits further analysis in order to identify
differences in the rate of utilisation in different sectors and different
occupations, gender distribution and age distribution before one can attempt to
reach a conclusion as to the causes of this discrepancy.

Sick
leave is usually paid in full by the employer for the first 3 days of any
sickness absence and then the employer pays the full pay less a sum equivalent
to the amount set for sickness benefit in terms of the Social Security Act.

Control
of abuse of sick leave naturally an employer may try to limit costs related to
sick leave absence, the most common tool used is the engagement of a medical
practitioner to examine an employee to ascertain fitness for work thereby
curtailing potential abuse.

There
have also been schemes whereby employers pay employees a bonus for
non-utilisation or minima utilisation of sick leave. One can understand the
reasoning behind this, but this may backfire on the employer as a sick employee
may have an added incentive to go to work even if ill and, apart from not
performing normally, may also expose himself as well as his colleagues to risks
to their health.

Health
status can affect work and work, in turn, can also affect health status.

There are occasionally different medical opinions as regards either
whether an employee is to be certified at all, or as to the forecast duration
of incapacity for work. It is important to note that if an employee presents a
medical certificate attesting to an incapacity for work, at law that employee
is entitled to sick leave.

Some WROs
expressly make a provision for the possibility of an employer to send a medical
practitioner to examine a sick employee, but this does not allow an employer to
ignore another practitioner's certificate. In cases where there are
considerable differences in opinion, it is up to the medical practitioners to
discuss a particular case and try to arrive at a consensus, both as regards the
presence or otherwise of an illness and any consequent incapacity. It is in the
employer's interest and his responsibility to ensure that, as far as possible,
he has peace of mind that the employee is really fit to return to work,
especially when the work activity of the employee may have an impact on the
health and safety of his colleagues.

Some collective agreements have provisions exempting some medical
conditions from being considered as sick leave. Similarly some employers choose
to fail to consider employees suffering from some medical conditions as being
entitled to sick leave. These include sunburn, period pain, hangovers etc.

The argument
brought in some of these cases is that some conditions are self-inflicted and
therefore sick leave should not be granted. This is illegal because it is not
the cause of the condition which is at issue here but whether a condition
renders an employee unfit for work.

This is a
medical assessment and the employer has to depend on medical advice. Somebody
in intense pain because of severe sunburn or who has a splitting headache and
is vomiting is in no condition to work, whatever the cause. Secondly, a
considerable number of diseases and activities that may lead to medical
conditions could be arguably considered as ‘selfinflicted'. These include
diabetes and its complications, ischaemic heart.

The European
Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has updated its guidance on the use of portable
electronic devices (or PEDs) on board planes – including smartphones, tablets,
MP3 players and e-readers.

16.2%: that's the size of the gender
pay gap, or the average difference between women and men's hourly earnings
across the EU, according to the latest figures released by the European
Commission. The figure has not moved an inch in the space of a year.

COST has a very specific mission and goal. It contributes to
reducing the fragmentation in European research investments and opening the
European Research Area to cooperation worldwide.

As a precursor of advanced multidisciplinary research,
COST plays a very important role in building a European Research Area (ERA). It
anticipates and complements the activities of the EU Framework Programmes,
constituting a "bridge" towards the scientific communities of emerging
countries. It also increases the mobility of researchers across Europe and
fosters the establishment of scientific excellence in the nine key domains:

Biomedicine and Molecular Biosciences

Food and
Agriculture

Forests, their
Products and Services

Materials,
Physics and Nanosciences

Chemistry and
Molecular Sciences and Technologies

Earth System
Science and Environmental Management

Information and
Communication Technologies

Transport and
Urban Development

Individuals,
Societies, Cultures and Health

How COST works

COST funds pan-European, bottom-up networks of scientists and
researchers across all science and technology fields. These networks, called
'COST Actions', promote international coordination of nationally-funded
research.

COST does not fund research itself, but provides support for
networking activities carried out within COST Actions. COST Actions are
bottom-up science and technology networks open to researchers and stakeholders,
with a four-year duration and a minimum participation of five COST Countries.

COST Actions are active through a range of networking tools,
such as meetings, workshops, conferences, training schools, short-term
scientific missions (STSMs) and dissemination activities. COST Actions are open
to researchers from universities, public and private research institutions, as
well as to NGOs, industry and SMEs. To learn more about participating in COST Actions,
please visit the Participate page.

COST invites researchers throughout Europe to submit
proposals for COST Actions through a continuous Open Call. The two collection
dates a year are announced in the Official Journal of the European Union and on
the COST Website. Following a thorough evaluation and selection process, the
decision for funding a proposal is taken by the COST Committee of Senior
Officials (CSO) within eight months from the collection date. Successful
proposals are approved to become COST Actions and can expect to ‘kick-off'
within three months thereafter. For more information on how to submit a
proposal for a COST Action, please visit the Open Call page.

Proposals for COST Actions can be submitted in one of the
COST Scientific Domains. Highly interdisciplinary proposals that cover several
scientific Domains can be submitted through the COST Trans-Domain (TD) Pilot.

Researchers can also apply to join an existing COST Action.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) provides the formal basis
for COST Action. The proposal for a new Action must fulfill certain formal and
qualitative criteria, and if the Committee of Senior Officials (CSO) approves
the MoU, the COST countries wishing to take part in the Action can agree to it.
A COST Action is launched when at least five COST member states have agreed the
MoU and starts with the first Management Committee meeting of the Action. It
runs for an average of four years.

COST Actions are open to international cooperation, by also
allowing the participation of researchers from Near Neighbour Countries and
International Partner Countries on the basis of mutual benefit. In addition,
COST has signed Reciprocal Agreements with Argentina, New Zealand and South
Africa as a pilot exercise to facilitate cooperation with researchers from
these countries.

How can COST help unlock SMEs'
innovation potential?

COST Actions connect researchers from universities,
institutions, with participants from the private sector. COST already has a
substantial number of SMEs participating in COST Actions working on issues that
range from environmental issues to nanotechnology.

COST aims at promoting SME participation in COST Actions.
This also through opportunities provided to SMEs by EU funding, the vital role
of networking, the need for knowledge exchange and transfer and the key
position of SMEs.

SME representatives can participate in COST Actions in two
ways: they can, within a network of proposers, submit a proposal for a COST
Action; alternatively, they can join an existing COST Action.

COST operates a continuous Open Call for Proposals, with
collection dates twice a year: in March and September. To learn more about the
COST Open Call and Collection Dates, please visit: http://www.cost.eu/participate/open_call.

In order to submit a proposal for a new COST Action,
researchers or experts in a science and technology field have to gather and
coordinate a network of at least five proposers affiliated with legal entities
based in at least five different COST Countries.

SMEs can also apply to join an existing COST action in a
subject which interests them.

MCAST's Institute of
Agribusiness is organising a short evening course for importers, distributors
and retailers of pesticides.

As you may know, the
Pesticides Control Act regulating the trade of pesticides states that all those
who handle these products need to have a license issued by the Malta
Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority (MCCAA). This is granted after the
interested persons follow a special course approved by the Authority itself.

The Institute of Agribusiness
is therefore holding such a course, consisting of 12 2-hour sessions spread
over 2 or 3 weeks and starting in early January. This course is approved by the
MCCAA and, after completion, participants will sit for a written test and
eventually be issued with their license. The fee for this course is €185.

Members who are engaged
in the importation, distribution and retailing of pesticides for agricultural,
industrial or domestic wishing to attend the course are invited to contact the
MCAST – Office of Part-Time Courses on 23987116 or 23987103 and by email on .

Information about specific furniture
product characteristics, provided to consumers at the time of purchase, may be
insufficient for them to compare between different furniture products sold on
the EU market. For example, such information may relate to furniture product
weight, dimensions, origin, materials and substances used, quality processes
applied, product durability, instructions and precautions on use, cleaning and
disposal, etc.

In this
context, some EU countries have introduced or been considering developing
information schemes specific to furniture products, which complement
information required under the EU product safety legislation. These national
schemes may well facilitate consumers' purchasing decisions, however, their divergent
information content can possibly impact the companies trading furniture across
the EU.

The
objective of this public consultation is therefore to gather stakeholders'
views on the possible needs for and impacts of enhanced information
accompanying furniture products sold in the EU.

Kindly
send your feedback regarding this consultation at:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/public_consultation_furniture