Public employees agree on historical demands: Women must have more in pay

The traditional women's subjects need a pay lift. And it's not self-evident, unions bosses point out. Therefore, 51 organizations, which together represent over 500,000 public employees, now coincide with a common requirement for employers to earmark a special pool for equal pay at the forthcoming collective bargaining.

When the parties meet for collective bargaining at the beginning of the new year, wage earners will have a historical requirement with the negotiating table. The women's subjects must have a payroll.

"Equal pay between men and women will never come by itself. The salary level within the women's domains is currently under male-dominated subjects with equivalent education. This must and must be done, and the first step on the road will take employees in the public area themselves, "writes trade union FOA in a press release.

Therefore, the negotiating community calls on employers to allocate part of the payroll to a special equal pay pool in the 2018 negotiations.

Originally, the demand for a wage lift for women from the four organizations BUPL, Social Workers, FOA and Health Cartel, whose members work extensively in women-dominated subjects. But now all members of the Negotiating Community, which comprise 51 organizations with a total of about 564,000 employees in the 98 municipalities and five regions, agreed to make it a common requirement.

"The degree of solidarity is historically high in these collective bargaining negotiations. To earmark a pool to someone means that others get less. But that there is nevertheless a consensus that we would like to help offset gender imbalance, illustrates well what characterizes the collective bargaining negotiations in this regard. Namely, we are heavily shouldered by shoulder. Across subjects, sectors and now also sex, "says the joint message from the four chairmen of BUPL, Social Workers, FOA and Health Cartel, who are Elisa Bergmann, Benny Andersen, Dennis Kristensen and Grete Christensen respectively.

They already sent a joint appeal to the members of the Folketing in September to sell a special equal payroll.

"We take the first important step from the employees. But should our daughters ever experience real equal pay in the labor market, requires politicians to take responsibility and intervene and break the curve so that we get real wages. It's time, "emphasizes the four federal leaders, who hope that employers will back up the common demands.