A-Infos (en) Government try and impose strike deal in Denmark

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Government try and impose strike deal in Denmark
May 7, 1998

An important meeting of shop stewards took place
this morning as the 500,000 strong private sector
workers all out strike in Denmark reaches day 11.
It had been planned as a national shop stewards
meeting, but it was finally reduced to a Zealand
region (where Copenhagen is) shop stewards meeting
to discuss the outcome of the strike.

Parliament is discussing today a compulsory
arbitration law in order to put an end to the
strike. This would mean 2 days extra holidays a
year, 3 for workers with children, and some
concessions to employers. If this law is passed the
strike would become illegal from 12 tonight and
from tomorrow the unions would be legally prevented
from paying strike fund money to the strikers.

The national trade union leader went to this
meeting hoping to convince the shop stewards that
this was the best agreement they were going to get
and therefore should be accepted. The Communist
Party line (still with some influence in the shop
stewards movement) was also to accept it as the
lesser evil.

But the mood amongst the shop stewards was, as it
has been since the beginning of the strike, that
the strike is mainly for an extra week holidays,
and that anything short of that is not acceptable.
Therefore, when a young apprentice stood up in the
meeting and said that the national coordinating
committee of shop stewards had the responsability
to take the effective leadership of the movement,
mantain the strike and fight against goverment
intervention with a general strike, the whole
meeting erupted and started to shout "general
strike, general strike".

After witnessing this scene the leader of the trade
union confederation quietly left the hall and
didn't address the meeting as it was planned. The
meeting also decided to call for a national march
on Copenhagen for Monday, although this action has
to be discussed at the national coordinating
committe of shopr stewards which is meeting
tonight. After the meeting the shop stewards went
to a rally in front of Parliament where the
arbitration law is being discussed.

Now it is not at all clear wether the law will be
passed, and if it is passed it could spark an all-
out general strike.

One of the arguments also used at the meeting was
"we cannot go back on our demands now, the workers
all over Europe are looking at us, if we win this
will have repercussions all over Europe". In the
meantime, the media internationally remain mostly
silent about this amazing movement.

Source details:
Date: Thu, 07 May 1998 14:02:04 +0100 (BST)
From: socappeal@easynet.co.uk
Subject: Danish strike day 11
Sender: union-d@wolfnet.com

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