The Employment and Training Corporation (ETC) was established in August 1990 through an act of Parliament entitled the Employment and Training Services Act.  The legal status given was that of a public corporation whereby it is managed by a Chairman and Board of Directors appointed by Government, and by executive management personnel.

The primary functions of the Corporation, as established by the said Act, were that of providing a public employment service and training persons to improve their skills to find employment.  In its early years, ETC focused on the registration of jobseekers, the provision of guidance to them and their referral for employment opportunities.  Its training function focused on the provision of training courses and the management of apprenticeship schemes. 

Milestones on the employment front included the opening of regional job centres and the introduction of the fingerprint recognition system for registration.  Major achievements in training services included the delivery of a wide range of training programmes that were attended by thousands of persons including non-jobseekers, and the expansion of apprenticeship schemes.

ETC was very active in preparing for Malta’s accession to the European Union in areas falling under its legal remit.  Such accession boosted the Corporation’s financial resources by tapping into the European Social Fund to expand its employment and training services offered to individuals, and to facilitate the employment of disadvantaged and disabled persons and the training of employed persons by employers.  ETC started contributing to the development of employment policies, both at the local and EU-level.  It joined the European network of Public Employment Services through which good practices are shared between peer organisations.

Active labour market measures continued to be introduced and improved upon along the years and they started being addressed to specific target groups for maximum effect.  Cooperation agreements were entered into with a number of NGOs that could provide better services on behalf of ETC to the latter’s client groups.

ETC was instrumental in recommending and implementing family-friendly and other active labour market measures that led to increased female employment in Malta, and the highest and lowest recorded levels of persons in employment and unemployment respectively.