A nation-wide ferry strike was narrowly averted on Thursday after parties to labour negotiations reached a deal after talks stretched into overtime. The Federation of Norwegian Coastal Shipping (NHO Sjøfart), the Norwegian Maritime Officers Association (Norsk Sjøoffisersforbund) and the Norwegian Engineers Union (Det norske maskinistforbund) reached settlements late on Wednesday night.
The naval officers reached a settlement around 11 o’clock, while negotiations with the engineers dragged on until after midnight, reported news bureau NTB. If wage agreements had not been reached, strike action would have affected ferries, fast boats, tugboats and other marine traffic across Norway.
The deal resulted in a general increase of 75 cents (øre) an hour, and plans to launch a study assessing the wage system in the agreement. The pay increase was in line with wage settlements negotiated by larger unions last month. “The settlement followed the frontrunner’s framework of 3.3 percent,” said Harald Thomassen from NHO Sjøfart.
newsinenglish.no staff