Health care workers threaten mass resignation in labour dispute

Tehy presses demand for 24 per cent pay hike

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The Union of Health and Social Care Professionals (Tehy), which represents trained professionals in the social and health care sector, announced on Tuesday that it aims for a 24 per cent pay increase over the next two and a half years.
      Such a move would mean an incremental increase in monthly pay amounting to a rise of between EUR 400 and EUR 600 by January 2010.
      The union also said that it would call for mass resignations of health care workers to press its demands. The Tehy executive will decide on Monday which work places and how many people the move would apply to.
     
The basis of the Tehy demands are the overall increases in the main contract for the municipal sector - nine per cent. In addition, Tehy wants a 15 per cent hike to rectify the perceived pay imbalance compared with other sectors. The management side is offering just three per cent to redress such grievances.
      All in all, Tehy is calling for twice the pay hikes that the Commission for Local Authority Employers (KT) is offering.
      Tehy calculates that the KT offer means that the minimum pay for nurses would rise by EUR 215 a month during the contract period, whereas the hikes demanded by Tehy would bring a monthly pay increase of EUR 446 - to EUR 2190 a month.
      "With this solution our wages would become competitive with the neighbouring countries and other OECD countries, and we would see to it that those in the field would stay at work, and that the field would be more attractive to young people", says Tehy chairwoman Jaana Laitinen-Pesola.
      On Monday, Tehy plans to submit an announcement of a mass resignation to KT and National Conciliator Juhani Salonius.
      Resigning is an individual decision for each employee, but a survey by Tehy suggests that there is willingness among the membership for such a drastic measure.
      "The organisation is taking responsibility for the matter. This means that nobody will go back to work before everyone is back", Laitinen-Pesola says.
     
Therefore, Tehy hopes to force the management side to take back all those who have resigned. Tehy also promises to help its members financially during the time that no wages are paid.
      The idea of the unusual tactic of mass resignation came from Tehy's organisation chief Kirsti Viljakainen, who proposed the measure to the executive. The action is seen as more effective than a traditional strike, because striking health care workers would still be required to go maintain a basic level of service.
      Viljakainen does not feel that there is any risk involved to individual employees. "We will not accept any contract until everyone is taken back to work under the previous terms."
     
KT warns that individual nurses would take a big personal risk if they resigned.
      "There is no guarantee that they can be taken back to work as old employees", KT says in its statement. The organisation adds that no extra money is coming from local authorities, "or from anywhere else".
     
Minister of Finance Jyrki Katainen (Nat. Coalition Party) calls the pay demands of Tehy excessive.
      Katainen, who is also the chairman of the National Coalition Party, indicated before Parliamentary elections earlier this year that he was in favour of rectifying the problem of low pay among certain groups of municipal employees. Tehy feels that the Katainen is reneging on these election promises.
      On Tuesday nurses working in the private health care sector signed a contract, whose pay rises fall below the level offered on the municipal sector. The private sector contract calls for pay rises of 11.7 per cent over a period of two years and four months.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Tehy rejects contract offer approved by other nurses´ union (1.10.2007)
  Union of Practical Nurses accepts municipal pay deal (28.9.2007)
  COMMENTARY: Companies entering wage talks to pay for Katainen gaffe (25.9.2007)
  Labour leader hopes for good cooperation with new government (30.3.2007)

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