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Government muzzles trade union strike powers
Shot across union bows, Unions outraged at "attack on workers"
ELSINORE - The coalition government has succeeded in rushing through radical emergency legislation designed to severely curtail the right to strike, as well as trade union powers to initiate industrial action, in a clear indication of the government's determination to slap down the "awkward squad" of militant union leaders and get to grips with worsening industrial relations.
Following a lengthy emergency session of the Folkhuset which dragged on into the early hours of this morning, the government passed the Strike (Emergency Powers) Act by relying on its parliamentary majority, together with 12 Social Democrats from the "Purple Club", a wing within the party supporting greater free-market liberalisation.
The Act gives decree-like powers to the Statsminister who has the power to over-rule any strike and even summarily decide, following cabinet consultation, if certain sectors (eg. public utilities, transport) or any specific cases of strike action, are to be banned, if they are deemed a threat to the "safety, health and well-being of the general public" or if industrial action is a "threat to national interest or security".
The most obvious aspect of the new law is that it instantaneously removes the powers of trade unions to declare unilateral strikes, seen by many as a traditional right of Danish labour unions. Until today, any union could legally call its workers out on strike within 48 hours without a members ballot.
The new Act now states that unions will need to present a case for any proposed industrial action to its members by secret ballot on a "one member, one vote basis", and that a majority of 55% will be required for it to be legitimate. Any ballot period will need to exist for 21 days from beginning to end.
In extreme cases, any union found to have broken the law can have all its funds sequestered and assets seized.
Furthermore, individual workers will have a right not to join a union, if they wish, something until now widely seen to have been abused by unions who commonly "pressgang" workers into union membership.
Following the passage of the law, Statsminister Hillerod was swift to declare the new act as a major reform.
"This is a great day for democracy and a victory for common sense and democracy. It also brings us into line with most other states like us. Recent events have shown us that the old law had stopped functioning and was open to abuse by reckless union rabble-rousers and demogogues. It was not a healthy state of affairs and it's through the gaping loopholes that the worst elements of the unions have sought to drag this country to its knees. Not any more".
Even so, any strike can still be over-ruled, despite a democratic ballot being held, on a case by case basis and reacting to events at a given time.
DUCTU, the national trade union organisation representing most unions within the kingdom, was at the forefront of the chorus of condemnation against the new law, and immediately indicated its anger at the new law, slamming it as dictatorial and an infringement of
the rights of Danish workers to exercise their rights to withdraw their labour in protest, an attack on freedom, and a lurch towards dictatorship. They have promised to initiate a court challenge to the law.
In a statement read on the steps of Congress House, the headquarters of DUCTU, they said:
"This is a black day for Danish workers, for our unions, and for Danish democracy. This government is removing the one way that our members, from every rank and file, have to show their anger, unhappiness, and
dissent. Rather than address the root causes of this and - give our workers respect, decent wages, quality of life, improved conditions, tackle inflation, unemployment - the government has merely sought to crush us in the guise of being clean and above board - which they haven't been. They've played dirty. So now they eat away a little more at democracy and use the recent strikes and economic woes to seize powers - a slippery slope towards an authoritarian state... [the] right to strike acts as a useful and legal safety valve to vent unhappiness and indicate that all is not well. Now that's been cruelly stripped away from us, we fear that that pressure will build and blow up in our face some other way".
The opposition Social Democrats, who have been keen to keep their distance from the militant unions, expressed similar sentiments, generally believing that the new act is too draconian and is likely to enrage opponents further.
Danish businesses though have broadly welcomed the new law, with a common view that it might stem the loss of money and foster a better climate for commerce to thrive and for the economy to tackle its recession.