The head of the municipalities’ negotiating committee said claims by the teachers’ union that its pay agreement was at risk had taken her completely by surprise, mbl.is reported. The Icelandic Teachers’ Union did not agree to a meeting requested by the Icelandic Association of Local Authorities o…

The head of the municipalities’ negotiating committee said claims by the teachers’ union that its pay agreement was at risk had taken her completely by surprise, mbl.is reported. The Icelandic Teachers’ Union did not agree to a meeting requested by the Icelandic Association of Local Authorities o…

A federal labour board has ruled that Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) should not discipline correctional officer Glen Collison for giving the middle finger to a federal government building. The incident occurred in July 2019 when Collison, who was attending a five-week dog-handling certification course at the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) training facility, was asked about his feelings regarding leaving the training program. After responding affirmatively to being asked if he was glad to be leaving, he was questioned about what would happen if he could not go home. In response, Collison turned away from the group and gave the middle finger to the CBSA kennel building, then to another building. His supervisor was informed about the incident, which was escalated to CBSA headquarters and then to CSC. Collison was disciplined with a $285 fine, equivalent to one day's pay, for what his supervisor deemed disrespectful conduct. The labour board adjudicator, Christopher Rootham, determined that while Collison's actions were 'puerile,' they were not worthy of discipline because he directed the gesture toward buildings, not people. Rootham emphasized that buildings do not have opinions, and the gesture did not challenge CSC's authority but rather reflected Collison's dissatisfaction with the training facility. The adjudicator also criticized the investigation for procedural unfairness, noting Collison was not informed of the allegations against him for six weeks prior to being interviewed. Additionally, Rootham found that CSC disciplined Collison to appease CBSA, which he deemed an invalid reason for disciplinary action. The ruling requires CSC to reimburse Collison for the $285 fine, including interest. The case highlights the importance of procedural fairness in workplace investigations and the distinction between actions directed at people versus inanimate objects in disciplinary contexts.

The Faroese Ministry of Finance has not yet approved a three-year agreement between the Health Assistants' Association and the Municipal Employers' Association, KVF reported on Monday. The two organisations signed the agreement on October 16. It must be approved by Finance Minister Aksel V. Johan…

Efling will have no contact with the Confederation of Icelandic Employers until collective agreements expire, the union’s chair, Sólveig Anna Jónsdóttir, says. She accuses the association’s director, Bjarni Benediktsson, of eroding trust, mbl.is reports. Jónsdóttir said she did not know what Bene…

Finnbjörn Hermannsson, president of the Icelandic Confederation of Labour, says internal disputes in the labour movement are unfortunate but not new, and hopes the current disagreements will soon ease, Morgunblaðið reports. He said the main point was that the unions had achieved a good result in …

Bjarni Benediktsson, managing director of the Confederation of Icelandic Enterprise, an employers’ association, called an alleged “drawer agreement” with union representatives “complete fabrication” when asked about it by mbl.is. The question followed a Facebook post by Sólveig Anna Jónsdóttir, c…

Efling chair Sólveig Anna Jónsdóttir says a mortgage interest benefit supplement was included in a government declaration before unions agreed to extend collective agreements, disputing Prime Minister Kristrún Frostadóttir’s account of when the measure was added. She made the claims in an intervi…

VR chair Halla Gunnarsdóttir has called remarks by Efling chair Sólveig Anna Jónsdóttir “absurd” and disputed her claims about changes to the government’s anti-inflation package, mbl.is reports. Sólveig Anna had accused Halla of orchestrating events after a press conference by the prime minister …

The mediation service will meet the Shipowners’ Association, the Shipmasters and Navigators Association, and the Marine Engineers Association again at 9 a.m. on Friday, KVF reports. The mediation attempt began on Thursday and is being held at KG in Klaksvík. On Sunday afternoon, the mediation ser…

Vilhjálmur Birgisson, head of the Federation of General and Special Workers in Iceland, says agreements signed by VR, LÍV and Fagfélögin on Thursday were largely based on an offer that had already been available the previous Monday, mbl.is reported. In a Facebook post, Vilhjálmur described the ev…

Efling chair Sólveig Anna Jónsdóttir sharply criticised VR chair Halla Gunnarsdóttir after a press conference at the prime minister’s residence on Thursday, according to mbl.is. The press conference was attended by Prime Minister Kristrún Frostadóttir, the president of the Icelandic Confederation…

SA, VR, LÍV and Fagfélögin have agreed to extend their collective agreement, mbl.is reports. The deal was reached shortly before 4pm, the deadline for terminating the agreements over a failure to meet agreed conditions. VR chair Halla Gunnarsdóttir met Prime Minister Kristrún Frostadóttir earlier…

With seven minutes remaining before a deadline to terminate collective agreements over a failure of their underlying assumptions, labour groups and employers were still trying to reach a deal, mbl.is reported. Representatives of VR, LÍV and Fagfélögin had spent hours in intensive talks with the e…

The Confederation of Icelandic Enterprise (SA) will not offer the VR union a better collective agreement than the one already in force if VR terminates its stability agreements, mbl.is reported Thursday. Ragnar Árnason, head of SA’s labour market division, made the statement in an interview with …

A labour coalition has extended its collective agreements with the Confederation of Icelandic Enterprise, leaving VR, LÍV and the Fagfélögin unions negotiating on their own. Talks are due to continue today, mbl.is reported. The coalition, made up of the Icelandic Trade Union Federation, Efling an…

The Broad Coalition of unions has signed an extension to its collective agreements with the Confederation of Icelandic Enterprise (SA), mbl.is reported. The coalition comprises the Icelandic Federation of General and Special Workers, Efling union and Samiðn, the Federation of Industrial Workers. …

The negotiating committee of VR and the Federation of Icelandic Commercial Workers has been authorised to terminate its collective agreement with the Confederation of Icelandic Enterprise if the employers make no offer, mbl.is reports. The mandate was approved by a majority at a meeting on Monday…

The Confederation of Icelandic Enterprise has rejected claims by labour leaders that it betrayed workers, saying it has honoured collective agreements. The organisation made the statement in a release published by mbl.is. It said disappointment over inflation and interest rates was understandable…

Skive Mayor Alfred Brunsgaard says a planned reception for Denmark’s king and queen will go ahead at a restaurant without a collective agreement, despite criticism from a local politician. DR reported that the royal couple are due to visit the town on Friday as it marks 700 years as a market town…

Prime Minister Kristrún Frostadóttir says a government action plan to protect collective wage agreements will be announced soon with labour-market representatives, Morgunblaðið reports. The proposals were presented at a cabinet meeting yesterday. The government has been in active dialogue with la…