Strike by office workers at seven companies hits core of technology industry

A strike by office workers affiliated with the Union of Salaried Employees (TU) began on Monday morning at seven companies in the metal and technology industries. The companies affected include the shipbuilder Aker-Yards, steel manufacturers Outokumpu, and Ovako, the metals company Rautaruukki, engine manufacturer Wärtsilä, the mining and smelting company Boliden, and metal fabrication and component manufacturer Luvata. Employers say that the strike will have a rapid impact on the operations of the companies. Last-ditch efforts to avert the strike failed over differences on the level and form of pay increases. National Conciliator Juhani Salonius said on Sunday night that the views of the two sides were too far apart for him to make a mediation proposal. The gap between the union demand and the management offer for wages is 2.5 percentage points over a two-year period. The industry has offered pay hikes which would raise labour costs by 8.7 per cent, while the labour side are calling for 10.6 per cent. Another dispute is over how the pay hikes should be targeted. Jaana Aaltonen, head of communications at TU, says that the management side is offering percentages alone. The union wants a flat sum for everyone, and a percentage-based hike for the higher pay levels. The TU wants all office employees to get a monthly pay increase of at least EUR 176 over the next two and a half years. The lowest-paid white-collar workers in the technology sector currently earn EUR 1,454 a month, which means that the rise for those with the lowest pay would be just over 12 per cent. Such a scheme would especially benefit women, who comprise half of the membership of the Union of Salaried Employees. Head shop steward Ari Havurinne at the Aker Yards Helsinki shipyard, where about 50 TU members walked off the job, said that he expects that the strike could delay handovers of ships, and slow production. One of the strikers, Raimo Oikarinen said at the front gate of the shipyard, that he does not expect the strike to last long. The Chairman of the Federation of Finnish Technology Industries, Wärtsilä CEO Ole Johansson, said in an interview with Helsingin Sanomat on Saturday, that the dispute boils down to a membership demarcation dispute between two organisations - TU, and YTN, the negotiating arm of private sector employees affiliated with the Confederation of Unions for Academic Professionals (AKAVA). Jaana Aaltonen says that the only reason for such a claim is the employer's desire to confuse matters. She says that the dispute Johansson referes to has already been resolved. "Now we are talking about money." The executive committee of the Federation of Finnish Technology Industries decided on Monday to suspend payment of TU dues in all of its member companies. The decision does not apply to companies in the information technology business. TU has threatened to expand its strike on October 31st, if no agreement is reached before that. If this happens, the strike would affect 20 companies and more than 4,000 employees. The strike could also be expanded after that. A total of about 30,000 members of TU work in the technology industry. Especially vulnerable to the effects of the strike is the Ovako plant in Imatra, which produces parts for the automotive industry. Delivery problems could rapidly affect the production of Volvo cars around the world for instance.
Helsingin Sanomat Source: hs.fi