[ad_1]
DOES NOT AGREE WITH THE EU: Deputy Labor Minister Henrik Asheim (H) says the EU directive on minimum wages is irrelevant to Norway. Photo: Hanna Kristin Hjardar, VG
The government is now taking further steps to prevent the EU Commission from forcing Norway to introduce European minimum wage rates through the EEA deal. In this case, LO and NHO are close to the authorities.
– We do not want any type of minimum wage system determined by the EU. The EU Commission has received a clear message in this regard, Acting Labor Minister Henrik Asheim (H) tells VG.
On Monday afternoon he had a telephone meeting with Nicolas Schmit, head of labor and social rights at the European Commission.
There, Asheim learned that the commission’s proposal for a European minimum wage system will arrive on Wednesday.
– He said we don’t have to be so worried. But there are many reasons to keep up the pressure. An EU directive on the minimum wage could affect the Norwegian free bargaining model very negatively, says Asheim.
also read
The government, LO and NHO fight against the EU minimum wage: – May give lower wages in Norway
Support in the Nordic countries
It has several allies:
Neither Norway nor the other Nordic countries want a legal minimum wage, according to the ministry.
The assessment is that Norway has little to do with a specific EU minimum wage system, because it could have a negative impact on tripartite cooperation and the Norwegian collective wage system.
– Minimum wage rates tend to be both the floor and the ceiling in determining wages. In Norway, it is the parties in working life that determine the wage level. It’s a good scheme that ensures that employees also get their share of the value creation, says Henrik Asheim.
-Sweden and Denmark don’t want it either, he adds.
VETO discussion
Asheim will not respond whether it is relevant for the Solberg government to veto the minimum wage if the directive is deemed relevant to the EEA.
– We do not have that debate on the veto now, when the most important thing at the moment is to influence, he says, and encourages the Storting parties to get in touch with sister parties in the European Parliament to influence.
Both LO and NHO have said no to the legal minimum wage:
– The NHO says no to a common minimum wage standard / policy in the EU and will not accept a proposal with a legal common European minimum wage, NHO head Ole Erik Almlid told VG last fall.
LO leader Hans Christian Gabrielsen was equally clear:
– The legal minimum wage is completely irrelevant in Norway. Wages will be determined in negotiations between the parties in working life, he said.
