The country’s nurses do not rule out strikes in this year’s wage agreement – NRK Norway – Summary of news from different parts of the country

This year’s salary settlement has already been postponed until August 3, as a result of the corona virus.

Salary growth in 2020 was originally estimated at 3.6 percent, but the virus situation has led to a downward adjustment to 1.5 percent in the revised national budget.

The Norwegian Nursing Association cannot find it there.

Willing strike

Applause, songs and praise. Nurses around the world have been praised for their efforts in the fight against the coronavirus.

But many have argued that applause is not a good enough payment for the work nurses do on a daily basis.

The average annual salary for a full-time nurse is just over NOK 544,000. Fewer elementary teachers earn an average of just over NOK 555,000. This is shown by the Technical Calculation Committee for the February Income Statement Report.

– Salary growth could be a motivating factor and guarantee recruitment for the profession, says Lill Sverresdatter Larsen of the Norwegian Nursing Association at NRK.

The nurses can now go on strike due to the pay settlement.

– It means a zero, or in the worst case, a negative agreement for our members. We don’t accept that, says Sverresdatter Larsen.

The Association organizes, among other things, nurses who work with patients with coronary infection.

– We expect a fee settlement that reflects the critical social role and the responsibility and expertise of nurses.

The union leader does not rule out strikes and labor conflicts.

– That’s the tool we have, so I can never rule it out. We have to analyze the situation, as we do in each agreement, “says Sverresdatter Larsen.

The strikes have been used as a result of previous wage negotiations. Already in 2018, the government had to intervene with a forced payroll after the strike that almost led to the lockout.

The Nurses’ Struggle

Salary has long been one of the fight cases for nurses in the country. But perhaps even more important is the fight for a better work day.

– It is important that nurses receive the salary they deserve. But we also haven’t felt comfortable in Norwegian hospitals before the crown crisis, says Jannike Arnesen, a nurse at Sørlandet Hospital.

In March, Arnesen published a publication in VG where he transmitted that they are all part of a community that works together against the coronavirus. After that, she was praised for her work by Prime Minister Erna Solberg during a speech on March 18.

Arnesen is concerned that nurses may have an affordable work day and feel that they are doing a good enough job.

But she believes, now as when she published the post, that it’s not just about the nurses.

– I think that our healthcare system is like an ecosystem, where many professional groups depend on each other to do a good job. I am concerned that we will raise the underpaid, not just the nurses, ”says Arnesen.

Most importantly, she believes she has enough staff.

– To have a decent daily life, we need to have enough nurses, health professionals, and janitors on the job.

Arnesen fears that the time after the crown will be even more difficult.

– If hospitals and municipalities do not receive adequate compensation after the crisis, we could risk having to work even faster than we do today. As the situation is now on the verge of pain, it worries me, she says.

Nurses’ salaries have increased annually, Arnesen believes one should focus on compensating so-called handicap guards.

– I mean that there are not enough supplements for weekends, nights and nights, for example, even if there is not a supplement for a year. Overall, we’ve increased wages year-over-year, but those additions hold up pretty well, says Arnesen.

It will not be dictated

The first in this year’s wage bargain is Norway’s largest union in the private sector, the Fellesforbundet.

The union, which is subject to LO, will not settle for a zero agreement.

– But our members should also not lose their jobs due to high salary increases, says federal leader Jørn Eggum.

He says the crown crisis has left its mark.

– At the moment we are now, there is great uncertainty about many things. We will decide on this when we arrive in August, but if it is shown to be close to what is now estimated, it will clearly be in short supply, Eggum says.

As the first in the pay settlement, he believes they are helping to set the standard for future negotiations.

– The framework we establish should be present throughout Norwegian society. Even the Prime Minister will adhere to the framework devised by the Joint Federation and Norwegian industry.

But Sverresdatter Larsen and the Nursing Association, which are organized in the main organization UNIO, believe that their negotiations should not be dictated by what the union negotiates until wages increase.

– We have previously been critical of the front-line model, which is unfortunate in clarifying the balance that is needed between public services and companies. This means that underpaid groups, such as nurses, have very little opportunity for real wage growth, says Sverresdatter Larsen.