Norway: unions don’t trust the new conservative government’s plans but employers are happy

Following the election held on September 9, won by the Høre conservative party, a coalition was formed with the FrP party (Progress Party, presented as a populist, anti-immigration party).  On October 7, the two leaders presented a 75 pages long document entitled “Political platform for a government composed of the conservative and progress parties.”  This document lists the 8 priorities, including “labor and social issues.”  While employers rejoice with these proposals, the text got a lukewarm welcome from union organizations, who are afraid of violations to the current labor regulations.  (Ref.  130626) 
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The government’s priorities: towards more flexibility. “We want work to be more profitable,” explained Erne Soldberg, leader of the conservative party, when she presented the document listing the new government’s big priorities. In addition to a reform of the public sector and the will to increase competitiveness in Norway by stabilizing employment, the government presented 3 themes concerning labor and social issues:

  • Pensions: the government commits itself to giving retirees a “safe and dign
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