TU warns of strike in the forest industry
[09.06.2008]
The Union of Salaried Employees TU issued a stern warning on Monday 2 June
to The Finnish Forest Industries Federation. The parties met on Thursday 5
June the National Conciliator Juhani Salonius.
TU announced its threat to take industrial action because bargaining talks aimed at securing a collective agreement for salaried employees have come to a halt.
The Union of Salaried Employees TU issued a stern warning on Monday 2 June to The Finnish Forest Industries Federation and the National Conciliator Juhani Salonius that industrial action is now imminent. The looming strike concerns 1,000 salaried employees working in 10 localities for Stora Enso.
Any such possible industrial action would concern all of Stora Enso's manufacturing plants in Finland, i.e. the mills in Anjalankoski, Heinola, Imatra, Kemi, Kotka, Lahti, Oulu, Uimaharju and Varkaus and the main office in Helsinki.
The strike will begin on Monday 16 June, at noon, unless the parties agree on a collective agreement for about 6,500 salaried employees in the paper industry. The strike would cover all tasks concerning Stora Enso's salaried employees and it goes without saying that this drastic measure would rapidly begin to have an impact on the manufacturing plants.
The parties met on Thursday 5 June the National Conciliator Juhani Salonius telling him their views on the unresolved issues. Next time Salonius hears the parties at separate meetings. TU’s negotiators will meet him on Tuesday 10 June at 14 PM. After these separate meetings Salonius will weigh the possibilities to go on with the conciliation.
Disagreement on pay rise and a multi-year pay programme
Collective bargaining between TU and The Finnish Forest Industries Federation broke down on Thursday 29 May when the employers announced that they are not ready to move on any of the unresolved issues. The most important of these is the level of pay rises and especially how salaries of salaried employees will be raised in coming years. The salaried employees, working as foremen, earn on average slightly over EUR300 per month less than their subordinates. Since 2000, according to the employers' own statistics, productivity with respect to salaried employees has risen by 35 per cent.
"The purpose of the threat of industrial action is to have, by effectively directed action, an impact on the forest industry employers. As the negotiations have not led to a solution we have to solve the difficult issues by increasing pressure on the employers", says Antti Rinne, the President of TU.
The Union of Salaried Employees TU has announced its readiness to approve pay rises that are on a par with the employees' collective agreement, signed in April by The Paper Workers' Union. However, as salaried employees have since 2000, received, on average, smaller pay increases than blue-collar or shop floor workers, TU demands that employers approve a programme that by 2016 would equalise the situation. The gap in pay is primarily due to local level development, because national collective agreements, signed by TU and The Paper Workers' Union, have, for the last eight years, resulted in similar pay rises.
"Our demands are just, not immoderate. Salaries for paper industry salaried employees do not represent or reflect the top-end of the manufacturing industry, but rather that of the average pay for Finns. Salaries for salaried staff have stagnated whereas pay for other groups has improved, Rinne argues.
The collective agreement covering the paper industry salaried employees expired on 31 May. Since then the interval without collective agreement has prevailed. The parties began collective bargaining talks on 11 April.
"Our rank and file have reacted calmly to the
situation and support the goals, defined by the union, Rinne says.
Viimeksi muokattu: 09.06.2008
[Kerro kaverille]
