Unions say they are no closer to deal, with 30 hours left

VR, LÍV and Fagfélögin are no closer to an agreement with employers but say they are not further away either, VR chair Halla Gunnarsdóttir told mbl.is on Wednesday. The parties are meeting at the office of Iceland’s state mediator, with 30 hours remaining before a deadline.

No new proposal had been put forward when the meeting began, Gunnarsdóttir said, adding that none of the parties had left the room. The unions are also in active talks with the government.

Gunnarsdóttir said large groups represented by the unions had experienced wage cuts in recent years, and that the proposals now under discussion would, in their view, mean further cuts. The unions want safeguards and guarantees for their members, she said, and believe the economic risks should not fall entirely on workers.

The Broad Coalition, a group comprising Starfsgreinasamband Íslands, Efling and Samiðn, signed an extension of its collective agreements with SA, the employers’ association, on Tuesday evening. Gunnarsdóttir said that agreement did not change the position of VR, LÍV and Fagfélögin, which had not found terms they considered acceptable.

She declined to reassess the chances that the agreements would be terminated, describing the situation as very sensitive.