Director of Employment supports lifting ban on private labour exchanges

The head of the Norwegian Directorate of Labour is in favour of abolishing the statutory prohibition against private labour exchanges. Employee representatives are critical of his proposal, mooted in late 1997.

In connection with the Norwegian Employment Services' recent centenary celebrations, the Director of Employment, Ted Hanish, argued in favour of considering the abolition of the prohibition against private labour exchanges. The Director of Employment believes that this ban, combined with the fact that the Employment Services is also responsible for controlling private operators, damages the Services' reputation amongst employers. Mr Hanish points out that at present the Employment Services does not actually have a monopoly, and that the prohibition is already severely undermined in many ways. One example is the specialised consultancy firms which offer recruitment assistance for higher positions. Other illustrations are the increased use of consultants, the growth in agency and seconded labour and the use of contractors. Moreover, the Director of Employment believes that the Employment Services themselves have no need for a total ban on private labour exchanges.

The proposal has been criticised by the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (Landsorganiasjonen i Norge, LO). In a commentary in the newspaper Dagsavisen Arbeiderbladet, LO secretary Liv Undheim fears that private labour exchanges will dismantle a unified system which encompasses placement services, employment measures, unemployment allowances and rehabilitation. Reactions to the speech by the Director of Employment have also come from the Norwegian Civil Service Union (Norsk Tjenestemannslag, NTL), the LO federation which organises employees within the Employment Services. In a press release, the deputy leader of NTL, Turid Lilleheie, states that the Director of Employment should review his position. Ms Lilleheie believes that the Director of Employment is undermining his own service.

Several of the political parties are in support of abolishing the Employment Services' monopoly, but so far there is not a majority for this point of view in Parliament. There are also differences of opinion within the new coalition Government on this issue.