Hudson raises wages for retail sales assistants, seeking to counteract rising cost of living and attract the best retail talent

Hudson raises sales assistant wages by 11.5% to combat cost of living rise

Nov 3 2022

In an attempt to attract the best talent, and to help its people deal with higher cost of living expenses, Hudson has increased its base salary for shop sales assistants in Malta.

All current sales assistants will be brought up to this new flat rate and will continue to benefit from a uniform allowance, double pay on Sundays and public holidays, as well as the possibility to earn commission based on performance and sales.

In addition to this, Hudson have also added life insurance to the overall benefits package they offer. Besides an attractive renumeration, all Hudson employees benefit from discounts of up to 35% when shopping from the stores represented by the company, a great family and work life balance, cultural diversity as well as the possibility to interact with the world’s best brands in sport and fashion.

Being a trail-blaizer, the company has always been at the forefront of innovation. This philosophy is cascaded throughout its various facets, including in the development and training of its staff. People and talent are Hudson’s utmost priority, and even when hitting challenging times, during COVID-19, when its stores were forced to close down, no employees were made redundant.

The COVID-19 pandemic, rising costs of raw materials, supply chain disruption and the ongoing situation in Ukraine has caused a great increase in inflation. Malta is no exception, especially since it has little natural resources, and is geographically cut off from mainland Europe.

Workers and businesses are struggling to cope with these rising costs, and are being forced to stretch their hard earned cash and in some cases having to consume less than they did before. Hudson employs a total of around 800 people across the group.

“This is an important move in being able to attract and retain employees, allowing us to be competitive in the market. It’s also great that with rising everyday living costs, we’re able to do this for our people and support their wellbeing, considering the vital role they play for our company” explains Hudson Group HR Director Kalani Weerasinghe.

Hudson’s head office is situated in Malta, with supporting offices in Italy, Cyprus, Algeria, Morocco and Nigeria. Hudson Group is a leading distributor and retailer with roots in Southern Europe and a focus on Africa. Hudson are the official NIKE distributor for over 30 countries across Africa and retails and/or distributes a variety of other sport and fashion brands including NIKE, Ted Baker, River Island, New Look, Intersport, Urban Jungle, Blackbox, Urban Bratz, Kiabi, Mango, Tommy Hilfiger, Armani Exchange and Calvin Klein. Hudson currently manages over 60 stores across Africa and Southern Europe apart from their growing online business.

For more information visit www.hudson.com.mt

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A goal to have women in 40% of leadership roles by 2027

Nov 3 2022

Speaking during a press conference, Parliamentary Secretary for Reforms Rebecca Buttigieg said that the government has a goal to have women in 40% of leadership roles by 2027.

This was announced during the announcement of the first Gender Equality and Mainstreaming Strategy and Action Plan.

Buttigieg encouraged everyone to ditch the stereotype of the woman who stays at home or belongs in the kitchen and revealed that the strategy will empower women to achieve financial independence, even in traditionally male-dominated sectors.

The action plan will address everything from period poverty (challenges women face during menstrual cycles) through the pledging of free pads and tampons and VAT-free menstrual products as of next year.

The action plan will call for measures that address social and economic policies, social security systems and taxation. Buttigieg said the government will investigate other gender disparities and suggest new measures to tackle them.

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A 150% increase to art and culture funds announces Minister Bonnici

Nov 3 2022

Minister for National Heritage, the Arts and Local Government Owen Bonnici revealed that there has been a 150% increase in funds allocated to the arts and culture sector in the recent budget.

Bonnici revealed in parliament that, next year, over €60 million will be allocated to the cultural sector. The Minister said that the investment is an important part of the recovery from the pandemic and to boost the economy forward.

There was a big surge in tourists who visited historical sites in the country after the pandemic. Heritage Malta alone was the recipient of an investment of €8,700,000, with another €2 million added after.

The recurrent allocation alone for 2023 – EUR 60 million – is already double the total amount of funds (recurrent and capital) invested by a Nationalist Administration in their last budget.

The allocation for next year (a total of almost EUR 85 million) represents a 7.5% increase over last year.

All this is happening in an immediate post-pandemic period, with a war between Russia and Ukraine affecting the markets and energy prices all over the world. At the same time our public finances are in order and well within the fiscal criteria imposed by the European Commission.

‘This is what taking culture and the arts seriously looks like’.

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Brace yourselves for traffic: 60km of road projects per year planned

Nov 3 2022

It was revealed by Transport and Infrastructure Minister Aaron Farrugia that approximately 60km worth of residential road-building projects will take place per year.

Infrastructure Malta (IM) has prepared a work plan with local councils for residential roads, with around 54 local councils being in consultation.

The work plan is to supposedly be stretched out over the next three years as a continuation of the implementation of the national plan to improve residential road quality.

Minister Farrugia emphasised the importance of quality and safe roads for people, but also encouraged active mobility and active means of transport. He also highlighted the €35 million investment to strengthen cycling infrastructure.

However, many across the island have often lamented at the fact that most traffic jams occur and are maintained due to the large amount of ongoing and dragging road projects.

For this, Farrugia said that an effective system will be put in place to ensure transparency to commuters and residents as to the responsible entities, deadlines and length of any inconvenience.

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