MCAST Students Left Struggling And ‘Feeling Like Slaves’ After Failing To Receive Top-Up Stipend
Several MCAST students have reached out to Lovin Malta after not receiving their monthly top-up stipend for apprenticeships.
Apprenticeship students enrolled in various courses are frustrated with MCAST after failing to be given their top-up stipend, which covers part of their apprenticeship wage.
“I feel like a slave working for €1.50 or less an hour for 40 hours straight per week,” one student told Lovin Malta. “I know this is done for us students to gather knowledge and experience but we have rights as well and we want the money we are entitled to.”
Not all students are in the same situation, with different students have recieved some months wage, while others haven’t. A number of them tried chasing the stipends office as well as the education authorities over the issue in the hopes of receiving an explanation.
Students who contacted such authorities were generally met with the same reply: their backdated stipend will be given. However, to date, most students have not received their backdated stipend.
“This is a huge struggle for most of us as we are going to our placements through these tough and dangerous times earning only €200 from our employers with the hope that we receive our backdated stipend only to be disappointed month after month,” another student told us.
Lovin Malta has tried contacting the MCAST stipends office but a reply is yet to be given.