Jørgensen, Carsten
Little support for abolition of nurses' right to strike
27 October 1999
On 14 October 1999, during a debate in the Danish parliament (Folketinget),
the Minister of Labour, Ove Hygum, was asked the following question by the
labour affairs spokesperson of the Christian People's Party (Kristeligt
Folkeparti) Ole M Nielsen: "What initiatives will the government take in
order to limit or avoid the use of collective industrial action within areas
of social importance in the health sector, and simultaneously secure the
rights of the employees to a necessary extent?" Mr Hygum answered: "None".
Construction unions criticises new rules on posting of workers
27 October 1999
John Larsen, the chair of the Cartel of Building, Construction and
Woodworkers' Unions (Bygge-, Anlægs- og Trækartellet, Bat-kartellet) -
affiliated to the Danish Confederation of Trade Unions (Landsorganisationen i
Danmark, LO) - has sharply criticised the Ministry of Labour's proposal, made
at the end of July 1999, for new rules on the posting of workers. The
proposal (/Udkast til forslag til lov om udstationering af lønmodtagere/)
seeks to transpose into Danish law the EU Directive concerning the posting of
workers in the framework of the provision of services (96/71/EC) [1]. The
basic principle of the Directive is that a basic core of working conditions
and pay provisions in effect in a Member State should be applicable both to
workers from that state, and those from other EU countries posted to work
there. The core rules include matters such as working time, holidays, minimum
pay rates, health and safety and equality.
[1] http://europa.eu.int/smartapi/cgi/sga_doc?smartapi!celexapi!prod!CELEXnumdoc&lg=en&numdoc=31996L0071&model=guichett
Privatisation leads to disputes between unions
27 September 1999
Given an increasing amount of contracting out of public services and the
privatisation of state-owned corporations, and after a freeze on the new
employment of public servants which has so far lasted two years, it seems
there is no future for trade unions in solely organising public servants and
other employees in the public sector. The large public sector trade unions
have drawn this lesson and have, so to speak, moved with their old members
into the private sector, representing more and more private sector workers.
This has caused discord within the Danish Confederation of Trade Unions
(Landsorganisationen i Danmark, LO) (DK9709129F [1]).
[1] www.eurofound.europa.eu/ef/observatories/eurwork/articles/undefined-business/privatisation-and-contracting-out-causes-inter-union-conflict
Confederation of Danish Industries wants flexible working hours
27 September 1999
In September 1999, the Confederation of Danish Industries (Dansk Industri,
DI) held a series of meetings to highlight the wish of Danish industrial
enterprises to institute working time flexibility in order to enable
employees to work more or less than the standard 37 hours per week at certain
times of the year. During the spring 1998 collective bargaining round in
industry, employers prioritised improved possibilities to institute more
flexible working hours in companies, and succeeded in realising this demand.
The new collective agreement made it possible to average out the 37-hour week
over a 52-week reference period (DK9803158F [1]). In practice, this means
that the enterprises with large seasonal variations in demand are able to let
their employees work more hours in the peak season and fewer during the rest
of the year. However, the agreement made the introduction of such
arrangements dependent on a local agreement between management and employees.
[1] www.eurofound.europa.eu/ef/observatories/eurwork/articles/undefined-working-conditions/breakthrough-in-industry-sector-on-brink-of-conflict
LO and DA conclude anti-dispute agreement
27 September 1999
With the private sector's major industrial dispute of spring 1998 in mind
(DK9805168F [1]), the Danish Confederation of Trade Unions
(Landsorganisationen i Danmark, LO) and the Danish Employers' Confederation
(Dansk Arbejdsgiverforening, DA), have decided to make joint arrangements for
the 2000 collective bargaining round, in order to avoid a repetition of the
conflict. The two confederations have thus entered a framework "agreement
laying down rules for decentralised (ie sector level) bargaining within the
DA/LO area". The so-called "climate agreement", which was presented on 14
September 1999, seeks to maintain the right of the two confederations'
individual member organisations to conduct decentralised negotiations, while
at the same time committing DA and LO to work resolutely towards a settlement
and to try to avoid a collapse of negotiations.
[1] www.eurofound.europa.eu/ef/observatories/eurwork/articles/undefined-industrial-relations/parliament-intervenes-to-end-major-conflict
LO report recommends that Denmark should join EMU
27 September 1999
The advantages of Denmark joining the third stage of EU Economic and Monetary
Union (EMU, or Den Økonomiske og Monetære Union, ØMU) far outweigh the
disadvantages. On the other hand, seen in the light of the economic policy
which Denmark has pursued since the end of the 1980s, it would not trigger
economic chaos if, following a new referendum, the Danes chose to remain
outside EMU. However, if they do, they will of course lose the advantages
connected with EMU.
Retailers refuse to employ Muslim women wearing headscarves
27 August 1999
In a recent high-profile incident, a Muslim woman of Lebanese origin was
rejected for employment by Denmark's two largest supermarket chains because
she refused, if employed, to remove the headscarf that she wore according to
Muslim tradition. The woman concerned, Maria Mawla, brought the matter to to
attention of the press in late July 1999. The national supermarket chains
concerned - the Danish Consumer Cooperative (Forenede Danske Brugsforeninger,
FDB) and Dansk Supermarked- refused to employ Muslim women in headscarves to
work at check-out desks or other visible places in their outlets. They
claimed that: individual headgear is contrary to their ways and customs;
headscarves are unhygienic and not compatible with the stores' principles
concerning uniforms; and the presence of staff in headscarves may put off
many customers.
LO wants new industrial relations structure
27 August 1999
The Danish Confederation of Trade Unions (Landsorganisationen i Danmark, LO)
reportedly wants to change the fundamental structure of Danish industrial
relations, according to a proposal which is still before the confederation's
executive committee for approval. It seeks the abolition of the employers'
right to direct and divide the work, enshrined in the basic agreement [1]
(hovedaftalen) with the Danish Employers' Confederation (Dansk
Arbejdsgiverforening, DA) which determines the fundamental rules of the
labour market, as well as a wider revision of the agreement. The background
to this proposal, entitled /Welfare is an obligation/, is that LO wants
greater flexibility in industrial relations, whereby employees and employer
at the individual workplace level would enter into a contract which
determines the quantity of work the employees have to perform and the payment
for this work. It is stated in the introduction to the proposal that "this
contract should also deal with the working environment, social
considerations, the division of profits etc. Accordingly, it would be up to
the wage earners collectively to direct and divide the work and the payment".
[1] http://www.denmarkemb.org/labor/lab12.htm
Controversy over outsourcing of public tasks
27 August 1999
Around 450 hospital orderlies and cleaners at three hospitals in the county
of Frederiksborg went on strike on 16 August 1999 in protest against a
proposal by the county council - headed by county mayor,Lars Lykke Rasmussen-
that all hospital orderly and cleaning work should be put out to tender by
private companies. The unofficial strike was a culmination of a long period
of dissatisfaction with statements from counties and municipalities in the
metropolitan area that they will outsource a large number of public tasks to
the private sector to achieve budget cuts. The Danish Confederation of Trade
Unions (Landsorganisationen Danmark, LO) organisation in the Copenhagen area
stated that the outsourcing plans indicated disdain for the municipal and
county employees and their performance over many years, and warned directly
that labour disputes might occur.