While collective agreements take place throughout the year, a series of collective agreements are usually concluded, mainly concerning the public sector, in the weeks leading up to political elections. In cases where a voluntary agreement is concluded, a memorandum containing the terms of the agreement shall be drawn up and signed by the parties concerned or their representatives. Such a comparison binds the parties and the workers represented. The 2017-2024 collective agreement for public service employees provides for a better structure of qualification allowances. The public administration attaches importance to improving the qualifications and skills of its staff, so much so that it has established the Institute of Public Services in collaboration with the University of Malta and MCAST. This collective agreement also provides for a new measure for workers who choose to work after reaching retirement age. These employees can now benefit from their early retirement as soon as they leave their duties. The collective agreement for civil service employees can be considered the only collective agreement at the sector level and covers about 32,000 employees. Collective bargaining in Malta will take place mainly at company level. The latter include companies in which the state is the majority shareholder and independent legal entities that employ about 11,000 people, all covered by individual company agreements, and the private sector, which employs about 125,000 people. According to a report by the Central Bank of Malta, Results of the 2014 Wage Dynamics Network for Malta, around 23% of private sector employees were covered by a collective agreement in 2013. An estimate based on these criteria would show that civil servants represent 45% of all Maltese workers covered by a collective agreement, while the remaining 55% exceeded 55% for workers covered by a collective agreement at company level.
No level can be considered dominant, as the enterprise level is the main level of negotiation in Malta. The existing collective agreement remains valid until it is replaced after the signing of a new collective agreement. There is no obligation of company peace during the period of validity of a collective agreement. As a general rule, collective agreements contain clauses that contain the procedure for settling a dispute. The government has announced the first sectoral agreement with the Maltese Armed Forces (AFM), which offers better conditions for soldiers through an €8.2 million deal.
