Maltese workers are finding it increasingly hard to juggle between their job and personal life with a worrying deterioration in their work-life balance, an international study has concluded. It transpires that in just six years Malta has slid down from second to 15th place among the 27 EU member states. This work-life balance deterioration was flagged in the European Job Quality Index published by the European Trade Union Institute (ETUI).

This index which encompasses six main indicators with the aim of comparing the quality of jobs across the EU as well as analysing trends over time.

Of particular concern to Maltese workers were two particular indicators. In the work-life balance index Malta scored 76 from hundred which is slightly below the EU average, but the bottom line is it lost 13 places from 2015 to 2021. This index takes into consideration long working hours (over 48 per week), unsocial hours such as night shifts hours, and the impact on personal activities and social commitments. In this indicator Sweden tops the list followed by Denmark and Germany while Greece and Poland place last and penultimate respectively.

The second major concern which emerged from this study focuses on the level of salaries. In income quality indicator Malta scored 59.3 out of 100, placing fourth from bottom with only three countries faring worse being Greece, Romania and Bulgaria which placed last. The rest of Eastern European countries which until recently were considered as the ‘poorer’ member states have overtaken Malta, which is well below the EU average of 69.2. Apart from taking into consideration the income, this indicator also measures the predictability of earnings and the adequacy of the income to make ends meet. This particular trend is further testament to the struggles of the majority of Maltese workers, especially the so-called middle class or middle-income earners, to cope with the sharp increase in the cost of living which is eroding their purchasing power.

Malta’s overall position in the JQI was 11th with a score of 57.1 which was above the EU average of 51.6.  The positive indicators which propelled Malta to a respectable position were employment security in which it ranked 7th, skills and career development also 7th, working conditions 9th, and collective interest representation which is a measure of the level of unionisation in which it ranked 12th.