24 January, 2012Over 150,000 workers came out on the streets of Norway to protest against the imposition of a new EU directive on temporary agency workers. The directive can undermine collective agreements by permitting temporary contracts which currently have to be agreed with the unions.
NORWAY: National protests across Norway mobilised 150,000 workers, including members of the IMF Norwegian affiliate Fellesforbundet, the third week of January. The protests were staged against the new European Union temporary workers directive. The actions were part of the fight announced at the Fellesforbundet Congress in October last year, when the union decided to urge the government not to implement the European Union Temporary and Agency Workers Directive in Norway.
While welcoming the part of the directive concerning equal treatment of temporary and permanent workers the Norwegian unions are worried that implementation of the directive will remove several restrictions in collective agreements currently obliging employers to agree on any kinds of temporary contracts with trade unions.
The unions believe the adoption of the directive will boost temporary agencies and precarious work in Norway where permanent employment so far is a norm.