A threat of a total strike in the Finnish food sector
The Collective Agreements in the food and beverage industry sector in Finland ran out on the 31 March 2010. The negotiations on the renewal of the Collective Bargaining Agreements in the sector have been ongoing since then without an end result in sight.
The Finnish Food and Drink Industries’ Federation ETL is pushing for a new working time model, which would impair the working conditions by making possible to increase the weekly working hours up to 50, weekly working days up to 6 and use all days of a week without over time compensation . ETL wants to cut down the limitations regarding overtime work, temporary working relations and outsourcing. SEL’s members are dead against any solutions that increase work place flexibility options as they don’t trust their local management. Flexibility without sufficient security ingredients in other words. The Finnish Food Workers’ Union SEL, on its part, is demanding to create more just wage groupings and pay schemes in the food sector, improvement of the measures on occupational health & safety in order to prevent the amount of accidents and occupational deceases, improvements of the social benefits with regard to the family welfare.
In order to speed up the negotiations SEL has carried out two limited strikes in the biggest industry units 7-9 April (covering 12 companies, 4500 workers) and 21-23 April (covering 57 companies, 9300 workers). As an answer the ETL announced a lockout (covering 235 companies and 18 000 workers), which however was interrupted after 28 hours.
The national conciliator Mr. Esa Lonka has drafted during the negotiations three proposals for the Collective Agreement. All proposals have been rejected by SEL’s Council.
The third wave of strikes is announced for the period 5-10 May, covering 84 companies and 11 700 workers. This strike started yesterday. In case an acceptable bargaining result cannot be reached, the total strike threat covering the whole branch is starting from May 11 onwards. All in all, this is the most serious labor dispute in the food sector in the last 15 years.
Campaign
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