Jørgensen, Carsten
Social partners encourage the use of agreement-based jobs on special terms
12 október 2005
Even if it is a precondition for a person to be offered a flexjob that his or
her working capacity is considerably and permanently reduced every seventh of
the 'flexjobbers' had not received sickness benefits or similar publicly
financed subsidies in the year prior to the achievement of a flexjob. This is
the result of a survey published by the Confederation of Danish Employer’s
(Dansk Arbejdsgiverfiorening, DA’s) magazine Agenda 22 September 2005.
Trade union proposes social shop stewards
05 szeptember 2005
According to a press release issued 24. August 2005 by the Danish
Metalworkers Union (Dansk Metal) it has become more and more difficult for
employees to return to the workplace after long-term absence due to sickness,
a personal crisis or an on-the-job injury. The union Therefore proposes the
introduction of a 'social shop steward' whose task is to help the colleague
back in the routines of his or hers particular job and deal with possible
phycological blockings. The supportive measures begin during the period of
absence, where the social shop steward will pay visits after some time of
absence to the absent colleague.
European Court of Human Rights to rule on closed-shop agreements
25 augusztus 2005
On 22 June 2005, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in Strasbourg held
a Grand Chamber hearing in order to hear representations in a case concerning
closed-shop agreements in Denmark (/Sørensen and Rasmussen v Denmark/,
application nos. 52562/99 and 52620/99). In 1999, two Danish citizens lodged
complaints against the Danish state of violation of their freedom of
association. The case has fundamental importance for the Danish trade union
movement and their historic right to sign closed-shop agreements. Especially
during the last decade, experts have debated whether closed-shop agreements
are out of step with the contemporary conception of human rights. The final
ECHR judgment, which will be delivered in autumn 2005, is thus thought likely
to have an influence on the Danish model of collective bargaining.
Decline in union membership continues
24 augusztus 2005
An internal paper drawn up by the Danish Confederation of Trade Unions
(Landsorganisationen i Danmark, LO) in summer 2005 examines general features
of the development of Danish trade union membership with a particular focus
on LO. It finds that the fall in membership continues - see the table below.
The membership of LO, Denmark's largest union confederation has now declined
for 10 successive years (DK0201159N [1]).
[1] www.eurofound.europa.eu/ef/observatories/eurwork/articles/trade-union-density-falls
Survey shows an increase of fringe benefits as part of the wage
14 augusztus 2005
More Danish employees in the service and commercial sector choose to receive
a number of personal fringe benefits if offered by the employer. This is the
result of a survey, which will be published in August 2005, made by the
employers’ association Danish Commerce and Service (Dansk Handel & Service,
DHS) among its member companies. It is mostly bonus or commision
arrangements, but also benefits like free internet and/or daily newspaper,
healthy food at work, childcare, share options, keep-fit exercises,
additional days off or a company-paid car, which have been chosen by the
employees of the companies interviewed in the survey. Four hundred retail and
service companies has been involved.
2004 Annual Review for Denmark
14 július 2005
The government formed in November 2001 by the Liberal Party (Venstre) and the
Conservative Party (Det Konservative Folkeparti), headed by Venstre leader
Anders Fogh Rasmussen, continued in office during 2004. The only election
held in 2004 was that to the European Parliament in the spring.
Seminar highlights flexicurity in the labour market
10 július 2005
The Danish labour market is as flexible as the UK labour market and, at the
same time, employees benefit from a degree of security which is at a similar
level to that offered by the Swedish labour market. In recent years, numerous
international and Danish studies have confirmed this characteristic feature
of the Danish labour market. This is one of the conclusions of a new Danish
study on flexibility and job security in the labour market. The combination
of 'flexibility and security' is called /flexicurity/ in EU terminology.
Offshoring found to create new jobs
27 június 2005
A process of cooperation between two trade unions, the Union of Danish
Metalworkers (Dansk Metal) and the Danish Society of Engineers
(Ingeniørforeningen i Danmark, IDA), and the Danish Federation of Small and
Medium-Sized Enterprises (Håndværksrådet, HVR) trade association resulted
in May 2005 in a joint report about the consequences for jobs in Denmark of
economic globalisation, ie relocation, 'outflagging' or 'offshoring' as it is
called in the report.
Industrial action increases moderately in 2004
06 június 2005
The yearly publication from Statistics Denmark concerning industrial disputes
and lost working days, based on reports from 35 large public and private
employers and employers’ associations, shows an increase in the number of
strikes and lost working days in 2004 as compared with 2003 - see table 1
(DK0406101N [1]). However, the number of lost working days (76,400) is still
moderate and well below the 2002-level (193,600), which is the highest since
the major conflict in 1998. In 1998 lost working days amounted to 3,173,000
days due to a conflict of interest in connection with the renewal of the
collective agreement in the private sector covered by the main organisations
the Danish Confederation of Trade Unions (Landsorganisationen i Danmark, LO)
and the Confederation of Danish Employers (Dansk Arbejdsgiverforening, DA)
(DK9804166N [2]).
[1] www.eurofound.europa.eu/ef/observatories/eurwork/articles/industrial-action-falls-sharply-in-2003
[2] www.eurofound.europa.eu/ef/observatories/eurwork/articles/1998-bargaining-round-ends-in-major-conflict
The expected invasion of cheap labour from the new Eastern EU countries did not take place
12 május 2005
Like most other EU 15 countries, but in contrast to the neighbouring country
Sweden, Denmark introduced a set of transitional rules as of 1 May 2004
concerning the immigration from the new Eastern member countries of EU. A
majority in the Danish Parliament and the social partners supported the
rules, which was aimed at protecting the balance at the Danish labour market
as well as protecting the social welfare system against 'social tourism' from
the East. As Denmark has no national minimum wage defined by law or by
collective bargaining, the initiative also aimed at supporting the existing
collective agreement system, in broad terms called the Danish Model, where
wages are agreed at sectoral level and company level. The worst scenario was
that otherwise the country would experience an invasion by Eastern European
workers, shopping around, working at wages well below the collectively agreed
levels and sooner or later to be counted among the unemployed (DK0312103F
[1]).
[1] www.eurofound.europa.eu/ef/observatories/eurwork/articles/transitional-scheme-agreed-for-workers-from-central-and-eastern-europe