Just over a week ago, Kiwi Krokeideveien in Bergen posted 10 part-time positions at 20 percent. It has met with criticism from an industry where every third employee works part-time, and where many are dissatisfied with the number of positions. According to regional manager of Kiwi West, Jan Olav Mjøs, the reason for the announcement is the construction of a new store where it is not known what the turnover level will be in the long term. – We want to facilitate more positions that you can make a living from. Now four out of six full-time equivalents are 100 per cent. If the last two had been, we would have had major problems complying with the rest time regulations with long opening hours, he says. Mjøs says that the store must look at the composition of employees before the vacancy percentage is set for the individual. – We hope for several larger positions in the long term, but we need a mix of full-time and part-time. It is not to the liking of regional manager of Trade and office West, Espen Berntsen. – I think it is a big problem. Almost 390,000 people work in the retail trade and half of them state that they work part-time involuntarily, he says. It was the Free Trade Union that first mentioned the matter. WANT A MIX: – We hope for several larger positions in the long term, but we need a mix of full-time and part-time, says regional manager of Kiwi West, Jan Olav Mjøs. Photo: KIWI Almost half work involuntarily part-time Berntsen is referring to a recent survey carried out by Tankesmien Agenda. There, 47 percent of those questioned stated that they worked involuntarily part-time. 9,000 members in Trade and office took part in the survey. Half of them worked part-time. On Wednesday afternoon, there are over 700 unfilled part-time positions in shops, on the jobseeker portal Finn.no. – It is despairing. Retail is a huge and important industry in Norway, and we want people to be able to make a living from their jobs, says Berntsen. He also believes that the part-time challenge is an equality problem. – Among our members, 72 per cent are women. There are far more women than men in retail and they experience not being able to get a mortgage due to low incomes. In addition, they are sitting with the phone in their hands in the hope of being able to take on more shifts. We don’t want it that way, says Berntsen. WANTS CHANGE: Regional manager Espen Berntsen in Trade and office West, hopes a new bill will lead to greater job vacancies. Photo: PRIVAT New bill on the steps The government wants to strengthen the right to full-time work through several proposals that are under committee consideration. One of the legislative proposals is that the main rule in working life should be full-time employment. The need for part-time employment must be documented by the employer. In connection with the launch of the desired changes to the Working Environment Act in June, Minister for Employment and Inclusion Marte Mjøs Persen (Ap) stated the following in the press release. – That more people work full-time is important, both for the individual’s ability to support themselves and from a socio-economic perspective. High welfare in the future depends on enough people working in full positions, says Persen. Director of social impact in Virke, Stian Sigurdsen, emphasizes that there are more employees who want to work part-time and more who are entitled to part-time according to the law. – When someone has a claim or desire for part-time work, this leads to part-time jobs that become vacant. In the part-time discussion, one cannot escape the fact that part-time begets part-time. When you combine this with long opening hours, varying needs for staffing and inflexible working time rules, you get the part-time picture we see today, he writes in an email. Sigurdsen further writes that Virke believes that businesses make thorough assessments before announcing part-time positions. – We have no problems with someone wanting to work part-time for various reasons, but part-time should not be the standard, says Berntsen. WANT A NEW LAW: The government has put forward a number of proposed amendments to the Working Environment Act. The wish is to get more permanent and full-time positions in Norwegian working life. Photo: Stian Lysberg Solum / Stian Lysberg Solum
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– Desperate, says union leader – news Vestland
