Newsletter from the Nordic Labour Journal 3/2011
Editorial: Mobile labour creates turbulence
"I have freed my own work from the shackles of time and space," says the head of Microsoft Finland in our piece on open plan office spaces. He commutes in time and space between his virtual and real mobile workplace.
Theme: Staffing agencies challenging the Nordic model
From time to time 'The Great Debate" over the role of staffing agencies rolls out in the Nordic countries, despite the fact they provide a only a small percentage of the workforce. What makes this employment model appear to be a challenge to the Nordic model? 0.8 - 1.3 percent of the Nordic region's employable population are temporary workers, compared to the European avearage of 1.7 percent. By the end of this year the EU directive on temporary agency work must be implemented.
Black market cleaning a major problem for Norway's cleaning industry
Are staffing agencies just one step on the road towards an even more flexible labour marked, where those performing services become their own employers? NHO Service, the employers' organisation for Norway's cleaning industry, is sounding the alarm over an increase in cleaning businesses from 2,000 to 6,500 over just a few years.
EU directive on temporary agency work could reduce social dumping
Trade unions believe the EU directive on temporary agency work will see fewer staffing agencies pushing down salaries and working conditions.
Unique collective agreement for Sweden's staffing agencies
Staffing agencies in Sweden are experiencing a boom. In the last quarter of 2010 turnovers were up 42 percent on 2009 figures. Staffing agencies do however provoke conflicting feelings and staffing was one of the key themes during the latest collective bargaining process.
Temporary work agencies: misfits in Nordic working life?
This year will see the implementation of the EU directive on temporary agency work which is meant to improve labour mobility and facilitate the growth in temporary work agencies. It will also lay down demands for equal treatment of permanent staff and workers recruited through temporary work agencies. But do we know enough about the phenomenon that is temporary work agencies? Are the Nordic welfare societies ready for such a player on the labour market?
Portrait: The employers' voice in the European dialogue
Will the social partners reach agreement on the working time directive like they managed to come to an agreement on work-related stress? Initial talks have begun but nobody knows how it will end. The social dialogue is nevertheless playing a part in Europe's policy development.
We're not always happiest out in the open
To fulfil the promises of a better working life where people want to work for longer, we need new ways of reorganise the way we work - physically. Nordic Labour Journal has visited two workplaces in Finland where the new office space is already a reality.
Fatal accidents in Nordic workplaces nearly exclusively involve men
Men in the Nordic region are involved in fatal accidents at work far more often than women. 1,157 men died in work accidents between 2003 and 2008, compared to only 85 women.
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