New figures reveal that 53% of Norwegian employees were members of a trade union in 2004. Moreover, union density has remained stable over the last few years, following a period of decline during the 1990s. These figures are outlined in a report by the Norwegian research institute Fafo, which also examines variations in union density and bargaining coverage between the different sectors and groups of workers in Norwegian working life.
More than half (53%) of Norwegian wage earners were union members in 2004, according to new figures published in May 2006. Moreover, approximately 70% of Norwegian wage earners are covered by collective agreements. Developments in union density and collective bargaining coverage have remained relatively stable over the last five to six years.
New figures reveal that 53% of Norwegian employees were members of a trade union in 2004. Moreover, union density has remained stable over the last few years, following a period of decline during the 1990s. These figures are outlined in a report by the Norwegian research institute Fafo, which also examines variations in union density and bargaining coverage between the different sectors and groups of workers in Norwegian working life.
Union density
The union density figures were collected by means of membership information from employee organisations. As outlined, the 2004 figures show that 53% of Norwegian employees are members of a trade union; the density rate has remained stable at this percentage since 2000. Over a longer period, however, there has been a slight drop in union density, from 57% in 1990 to 53% in 2004.
A large majority of unionised employees are organised in one of the four main confederations in Norway. The Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (Landsorganisasjonen i Norge, LO) is still the most dominant union confederation. About 28% of all employees – or about half of unionised employees – are members of a union belonging to LO. However, LO has gradually lost members to the other main confederations. At the same time, the organisations for employees with a higher educational level have increased their membership numbers.
| Unionised (all) | 53 |
| – LO | 28.1 |
| – Confederation of Vocational Unions (YS) | 7.2 |
| – Confederation of Unions for Professionals (Unio) | 8.8 |
| – Federation of Norwegian Professional Associations (Akademikerne) | 4.8 |
| – Independent unions | 4.0 |
| Non-unionised | 47 |
Source: Nergaard and Stokke, 2006
Developments with regard to union density were also examined by means of a 2004 employee survey among approximately 10,000 wage earners. The survey revealed substantial differences in union density between sectors, and between large and small companies. The proportion of unionised employees is highest in the public sector (81%), and within the manufacturing and construction sectors (51%). Union density is lowest in the private services sector, and particularly low in both the retail trade and the hotel and restaurant sectors. In the private sector, union density is low among workers in small companies. While only 17% of workers in companies with less than five employees are unionised, a substantially larger proportion of 65% of workers are unionised in companies with more than 200 employees.
The survey also shows that union density is higher among women than men. While 59% of the female respondents are union members, the density rate among men is lower at 51%. One explanation for this is that more women than men are employed in public sector services, where union density rates are high.
Collective agreements
Some 60% of employees in the private sector – and 73% of employees in total – state that their wages are set by collective agreements. In the public sector, all employees are covered by collective agreements. Collective bargaining coverage is also high in the private transport sector, in manufacturing, and in banking and insurance. The proportion of employees who are subject to collective agreements is lowest in parts of the private services sector.
The Fafo report points out that questionnaire surveys tend to exaggerate the significance of collective agreements in Norwegian working life. Estimates for 2005 are based on registered information from the labour market organisations and suggest that bargaining coverage in the private sector is no more than 55%, and 70% for the labour market as a whole.
The 2004 employee survey indicates a slight drop in collective agreement coverage since the end of the 1990s, while the organisations’ figures suggest stability.
Commentary
Union density in Norway is high, comparatively speaking. This is particularly the case if taking into account the fact that there are no mechanisms in Norwegian working life that link union membership to eligibility for unemployment benefits – as is the case in the other Scandinavian countries, where the ‘Ghent system’ operates. The Fafo report also seems to indicate that there has been long-term stability in the support for collective institutions in Norwegian working life.
Nevertheless, the low union density rates witnessed in the private services sector pose a challenge for the trade unions (NO0505102N). In these areas, there are many workplaces, particularly small workplaces, where there is no union presence, and where employees have a less permanent relationship with the workplace, and indeed with the labour market as a whole. There is little evidence to suggest that the unions have been able to develop mechanisms for strengthening their presence in these sections of the labour market.
Reference
Nergaard, K. and Stokke, T.A., Organisasjonsgrader og tariffavtaledekning i norsk arbeidsliv 2004/2005 (in Norwegian, 389Kb PDF)PDF, Fafo report 518, 2006.
Kristine Nergaard, Fafo Institute for Applied Social Science
Eurofound recommends citing this publication in the following way.
Eurofound (2006), Trade union density at stable level, article.
