– Here we have a company in which the state has interests, and which has set requirements for its employees that are far beyond what is normal in working life. Jan Levi Skogvang tells news. He is the leader of the SAS pilots in Parat, and is in the negotiations with SAS. – I really expected more from a social democratic government, to be honest. If the state owes 1.5 billion Erna Solberg’s government sold Norway’s shares in SAS in 2018, but during the pandemic the state gave NOK 1.5 billion in crisis aid through loan guarantees. In June, it became known that the state is willing to convert part of, or the entire sum of NOK 1.5 billion into shares, but under given conditions. CAN BECOME A CO-OWNER: The state says they are willing to convert debt from the pandemic into shares. The picture is from when Minister of Trade and Industry Jan Christian Vestre (Labor Party) informed about the state’s position to SAS. Photo: Beate Oma Dahle / NTB Minister of Trade and Industry Jan Christian Vestre (Labor Party) did not want to go into the circumstances in question. – When we say on given terms, it is completely conscious. There are terms that it is not natural to go into now. It is a listed company. The dialogue we have with the company must be confidential, Vestre said at the end of June. – I hope one of the conditions is that SAS relates to the Nordic model, says Skogvang. The importance of Scandinavian co-operation In Norway, it is common for a collective agreement to have a duration of two years. According to news, SAS has demanded a duration of six years during the negotiations. It also means that SAS pilots cannot strike for six years. At the press conference, the Minister of Trade and Industry emphasized the importance of Scandinavian co-operation and the Scandinavian model. This is the Nordic model The Nordic model is a term used for special characteristics of the social conditions in the Nordic countries. The Norwegian model is built on three pillars: Safe financial management, common welfare schemes and a serious and organized working life. Governments, employers ‘organizations and workers’ organizations work together to help ensure stability and flexibility and economic growth. The welfare states are community solutions. Basic welfare services are available to everyone and are mainly publicly funded. Those who do not work are guaranteed a pension, social security benefits or unemployment benefits. Critics say the model has too large a public sector, making it too expensive to finance. Source regjeringen.no, NTB, Arbeiderpartiet and Wikipedia. The Minister stated “A good and trusting collaboration between employee and employer is our recipe for success. This is as important now as ever ». The Minister does not wish to comment on the ongoing conflict of respect for tripartite cooperation and the process that goes through the parties in working life. And when it comes to the state’s interests in SAS, they clarified their position at the end of June and this still applies. – SAS is a company that operates in Scandinavia, so of course I expect them to relate to the Scandinavian model, says the Minister of Trade and Industry in an e-mail to news. Receives support from SV – The way the SAS management acts is in stark contrast to the working life we want in Norway. They can not expect any state handshake at the same time as they undermine the Norwegian working life model, says acting SV leader Kirsti Bergstø to news. She criticizes the SAS management’s demands for a new collective agreement, and believes the demands are marked by mistrust and arrogance. SAS says that they follow agreements and legislation in Norway. – Fundamental rights in the Norwegian model are something SAS is behind. However, the pilot associations have a history of very many strikes that make it difficult to obtain investors to ensure SAS’s survival after the pandemic. This is something we have to deal with, but we can not comment on details that belong in the mediation room, says head of SAS in Norway, Kjetil Håbjørg. Read the full answer from SAS here: SAS answers this in an e-mail to news: SAS follows agreements entered into and the legislation in Norway. We know the pilot unions disagree with this and have put forward their views for legal consideration. SAS welcomes such a clarification, and it is also the right way to handle such issues. That this will be the subject of a strike in a collective bargaining agreement is very worrying, especially with reasons for lack of decency. The decent thing, from all parties, would be to await the legal clarification that is already planned. Fundamental rights in the Norwegian model are something SAS is behind. However, the pilot associations have a history of very many strikes that make it difficult to obtain investors to ensure SAS’s survival after the pandemic. This is something we have to deal with, but we can not comment on details that belong in the mediation room. Furthermore, it is important to be aware that this negotiation is more than a collective bargaining agreement. SAS is now fighting the battle of its life for survival, and our focus is on saving the company – and 8,000 jobs. We have been clear all along that in this work everyone must contribute, including the pilots. – This fight is about what kind of working life we should have. And something as basic as permanent employment, the right to bargain and that agreements entered into must be kept, says Bergstø. WARNING: The requirements in the negotiations can be costly for SAS, according to acting SV leader Kirsti Bergstø. Photo: Håkon Mosvold Larsen / NTB The agreement for the SAS pilots is for three years, which is longer than most others in Norway. – If the SAS management requires a duration of six years for a new collective agreement, it is an attempt to deprive the pilot association of influence over its own working conditions for a very long period. Such a demand is marked by both arrogance and mistrust, says Bergstø. At the previous mediation round, it became known that SAS was proposing a ten-year collective agreement. This would mean that the pilots could not strike during this period. The term is the duration of the collective agreement that is now being negotiated. During this period, the pilots cannot go on strike or renegotiate the agreement.
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– Expected more from a social democratic government – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
