MALTA Law and Practice Contributed by: Paul Gonzi, Rebecca Diacono and Mattea Pullicino, Fenech & Fenech Advocates
employment relationship cannot be converted into a self-employment relationship except with the authori -
will also typically differ depending on the grade, nature of employment and on the nature of the employer’s industry. Specific legislation also exists to regulate the condi - tions and limitations of the use of definite (fixed-term) contracts (and their possible automatic conversion into indefinite-term contracts), and the use of part- time employment. Further rules also apply if the employee is employed to work overseas or is an outworker. 1.3 Working Hours Working Hours and Overtime Working hours tend to vary according to the industry in question and may be regulated by sector-specific WROs. The average normal working week (excluding over - time) is a 40-hour week. In certain cases, normal working hours can exceed 40 hours a week. As a general standard, working time should not exceed a maximum of 48 hours a week, although an employee may expressly consent to work in excess of 48 hours per week. Such consent may also be revoked, subject to the provision of prior notice. It is understood that an employer has a right to instruct an employee to work eight hours of overtime per week. This is subject to certain exceptions pro - vided by the law, such as in the case of a pregnant employee, as well as for a period after an employee has given birth or adopted a child. Workers are generally entitled to a minimum daily rest period of 11 consecutive hours. In certain cir - cumstances, however, the full rest period may not be availed of, provided that equivalent compensatory rest periods are provided to the employee immediately fol - lowing the corresponding periods worked. With respect to overtime, employees who are not reg - ulated by sector-specific WROs are covered by the Overtime Regulations, SL 452.110, which lay down a rate of 1.5 times the normal rate for work carried out in excess of 40 hours a week averaged over a four-
sation of the relevant authority. 1.2 Employment Contracts Employment Relationship
The employment relationship in Malta assumes the existence of an agreement, whether such agreement is written or verbal. Although Maltese legislation does not mandate that a written contract must necessarily be entered into upon engagement, the standard practice is that written agreements are entered into between the employer and the employee. In any event, in terms of the Transparent and Predictable Working Conditions Regulations, SL 452.126, employers have an obliga - tion to provide employees with various criteria relating to their employment, including a basic description of the work to be undertaken. This may be satisfied by a basic letter of engagement, a contract of employment, as well as a collective agreement. If an employment contract is signed, then Maltese civil law generally applies the norm that the parties to a contract are free to regulate the conditions between them, in so far as the agreement satisfies certain basic rules (such as the capacity of the parties) and regu - lates a subject which is lawful. Therefore, the terms of a contract are generally deemed to be the law between the parties (lex contractu). However, a fundamental rule enshrined in Maltese employment law is that a contract of employment cannot provide certain condi - tions which are less favourable to the employee than those specified in employment law. Thus, by way of exception to the norm, the more beneficial minimum conditions provided by the law must always prevail. Contracts of Employment The terms of a contract of employment will vary depending on the type of employment relationship which exists, whether for an indefinite period, a fixed period or the completion of a project. Each type of contract must necessarily satisfy certain conditions and is subject to diverse rules, primarily in relation to termination of such employment and the consequences of same. Details contained in contracts
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