In September 2003, six Norwegian trade unions issued a joint statement outlining their intention to examine a possible merger to create a single union for workers in the transport and service sectors. The proposed new union would have 130,000 members and be one of Norway's largest, but the merger process is likely to face many obstacles.
On 24 September 2003, six trade unions issued a joint statement outlining their intention to consider formally a possible merger to create a new union organisation for employees in the transport and service sectors. There is still a long way to go before such a merger is agreed, and there are likely to be many obstacles on the way. If and when established, the union would be one of the largest in Norway, with approximately 130,000 members.
The idea of a single large trade union organisation in the transport and service sector is not new. Discussions about a possible merger have taken place for some time among a number of unions affiliated to the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (Landsorganisasjonen i Norge, LO) (NO0210102F). These are the Norwegian Post and Communication Union (Norsk Post- og Kommunikasjonsforbund, Postkom), the Norwegian Union of Railway Workers (Norsk Jernbaneforbund, NJF), the private sector Norwegian Union of Transport Workers (Norsk Transportarbeiderforbund, NTF), the Norwegian Union of Hotel and Restaurant Workers (Hotell- og Restaurantarbeiderforbundet, HRAF) and the Norwegian Union of Employees in Commerce- and Offices (Handel og Kontor i Norge, HK). Now, however, these five unions have been joined by the Union of Transport Company Employees (Yrkestrafikkforbundet, YTF), a member union of the Confederation of Vocational Unions (Yrkesorganisasjonenes Sentralforbund, YS). This is significant because the merger under discussion would thus involve unions affiliated to two competing confederations.
In their joint statement, the six unions have formally committed themselves to continuing talks and negotiations with a view to amalgamating, although no fixed date for merger has been set as yet. Originally six LO-affiliated unions were involved in preliminary talks over the proposed merger, but the Norwegian Union of Locomotive Drivers (Norsk Lokomotivmannsforbund, NLF) pulled out because of significant internal opposition to the proposal among its members. The other rail workers' union, NJF, decided to continue talks but also faces significant opposition among its members. NLF and NJF have for some time considered a merger to create a single rail workers' union and both stress that they would prefer to see the creation of a genuine transport sector union, rather than the proposed general service and transport sector union. Thus, the continued commitment of NJF to the merger process remains to be tested. Finally, there are also other more practical problems involved, not least in relation to reaching agreement about the new union's organisational structure, at both central and company level. Considerable time and effort will be devoted to this issue during the deliberation process and there will doubtless be tough negotiations between the unions involved. If and when the six unions manage to agree on the principles for a merger, it still will need the support of their members.