Why is Unio on strike?

Unio is on strike to defend the collective agreement for our members.

The collective agreement that Unio and Akademikerne entered into with the state – just two years ago – has been good for our members. The agreement has made it possible to tackle the negative wage trend for government employees with higher education.

Now the government wants to force us into a collective agreement we do not want. Without investigating the consequences first. Unio and Akademikerne are clearly the largest unions in the state, but the government still chooses to override this majority.

We cannot accept that the state forces all state employees to one collective agreement that is worse for our members. It is an undemocratic abuse of power that we cannot accept.

Poor salary development for state employees

– The agreement offered by the state would have provided a worse solution for Unio's members than today, and it was never appropriate to accept the state's proposal. The state knew full well that Unio and Akademikerne could never accept such an agreement. The state and the government have chosen this strike themselves, says Unio's negotiator, Guro Lind.

It is well documented that government employees with higher education have had poor salary development over time, both compared to highly educated people in the private sector and government employees with shorter education.

If you have a higher education, there is always more to gain from working in the private sector and not in the state. Therefore, state enterprises are struggling to get hold of the expertise they need. This weakens the services to the citizens.

Simple solution

The agreement that Unio entered into in 2022 addressed this injustice and was important in reversing the negative wage trend for government employees with a high level of education.

– The offer from the state makes it much more difficult to recruit and retain a highly educated workforce and we fear that the flight of competence from the state will increase, says Guro Lind.

– The government can easily call off the strike by extending the collective agreement that we agreed on two years ago, she concludes.