Swedish trade unions have agreed to work more closely together in coordinating collective bargaining and wage claims.
The LO confederation, with 14 affiliates representing mainly blue-collar workers, has worked out a formula for coordinated collective bargaining on pay in the upcoming wage round. This includes a commitment to focus on lower-paid workers, with the aim of securing higher minimum wages to underpin general percentage pay rises. Discussions continue on the specific figures to be applied.
“We have gathered all LO's unions behind this agreement, the first step in coordination. The next step is for the coordination to be quantified and that work to begin immediately,” said Torbjörn Johansson, LO's contract secretary. “The fact that we are now in agreement is gratifying, but the tough work remains, now the demands must turn into kroner and ören that are felt in the wallets of ordinary people.”
“The members of the LO unions are having a tough time now and everything cannot be handled within the framework of the collective bargaining agreement. It is not only the workers' responsibility to fight inflation,” said LO President Susanna Gideonsson. “When we see that more people are prepared to take responsibility, that the business world cuts back on bonuses and dividends, when the government comes up with proposals that make it easier for ordinary people, then we can also stand up because we take responsibility. Now it is up to other actors, politicians, and other parties on the labour market.”