A clear yes in the state sector referendum

After ten hours of overtime, Unio and the Ministry of Digitalisation and Public Governance reached an agreement in the mediation. The financial framework was 4.4 percent, and the basic collective agreement was strengthened in several areas. Unio and Akademikerne were successful in continuing their collective agreement, which YS also joined. Later it became clear that LO signed an agreement identical to the other confederations. In the referendum, 80 percent of the members of LO state responded in favor of the result.

– It is not a problem that we now have four identical agreements in the state, even though we could also continue with two. LO has chosen to join our agreement. Then I expect LO to contribute constructively in the local negotiations, says Sæther.

He points out that the members of Unio, Akademikerne and YS constitute a clear majority – 70 percent – ​​of the employees in the state.

– Our union representatives across the country have high expertise and good experience with local negotiations. I am confident that they will contribute to good salary development for state employees with higher education, says Sæther.

31 percent of members participated in the vote. In the two largest unions, 94 percent of Forskerforbundet's members voted yes, while 83 percent of members in the Norwegian Police Union voted yes.

– We would have liked to see higher participation in the vote, but it may also indicate that the result from the mediation is not perceived as controversial. The clear yes majority shows that our members support the result, says Steinar A. Sæther.

Read the interview about the wage settlement with Sæther here: Four identical collective agreements in the state – what now?