[1]: 3  The men were allocated roles as labourers, drivers, and stevedores and placed under the command of Major JV Aspinall of the King's Own Royal Malta Regiment of Militia.

[1]: 3  These were accompanied by a quartermaster, sergeant, corporal and five men from the Malta Corps of the St John Ambulance Brigade and three Roman Catholic chaplains.

[1]: 4  The unit worked closely with the ANZAC forces during the campaign and two of the officers who led the MLC at Gallipoli later served as Maltese commissioners to Australia.

Major-General Walter Campbell, on behalf of the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force, wrote to the Governor and Commander-in-Chief, Malta (Paul Methuen, 3rd Baron Methuen) that "I have much pleasure in informing you that the Battalion performed most excellent work, both at ANZAC and elsewhere, and I shall be grateful if you will be good enough to express to the Commanding Officer, and through him to the NCOs and men of the Battalion, my high appreciation of the services they have rendered".

[1]: 5  The unit, under Major S. Samut-Tagliaferro (from the militia) and comprising a dispenser, six hospital orderlies, 502 labourers, and 307 stevedores, arrived in Salonika on 26 September 1916 and established themselves at the Ordnance Depot.

The opportunity was taken to recruit a further 250 volunteers, and the reinforced unit left for Salonika on 5 December under the command of Major F Stivala of the Maltese militia.

[1]: 7  To provide replacements for those men returning home at the end of their contract who chose not to re-engage, a further recruitment of 926 labourers from Malta and Gozo was authorised in May 1918.

The MLC, recognised as the best of the foreign-raised labour units, was asked to provide detachments from both battalions to man the docks at Taranto from spring 1918.

This comprised 14 cooks, 42 waiters, 63 servants, two corporals, and three sergeants commanded by Acting Captain Charles F Von Brockdorff.

Arriving in Salonika on 23 February 1918, a further 18 waiters, 100 servants, three NCOs and an officer joined the unit on 10 March to bring it up to full strength.

[1]: 8–9 [2] A mining company was also started, serving at Montecchio Precalcino and Treviso in Northern Italy under the command of King's Own Royal Malta Regiment of Militia officer Lieutenant Frank Gollcher, KOMRM.