Efling leader says leaving ASÍ may become the better option

Efling chair Sólveig Anna Jónsdóttir says the time may be approaching when she can no longer argue that the interests of the union’s members are better served inside Iceland’s Confederation of Labour, known as ASÍ. She raised the possibility in an interview on Spursmál, reported by mbl.is, but said no departure is planned now and the issue would need to be discussed within Efling.

Sólveig Anna said she supports Georg Páll Skúlason for ASÍ president and discussed her own bid for vice-president. She believes a proposal to elect only one vice-president would exclude her from the union confederation’s leadership.

She said the proposal had already led her to tell Efling members that some people within ASÍ appeared to want to marginalise the union again. She linked this concern to her experience under the previous leadership of Drífa Snædal and Halla Gunnarsdóttir.

For years, members have asked why Efling remains in ASÍ when it is difficult to achieve results or get the union’s views heard, Sólveig Anna said. She has supported staying because leaving would be complicated and bring significant problems, but added that the situation must be reassessed realistically.

One option, she said, would be for Efling to leave ASÍ and form a workers’ federation with other unions, with independent representation on the National Economic Council. She criticised the council’s current arrangements, saying the ASÍ president represents a large and diverse group with significant internal class divisions, while KÍ, BSRB and BHM each have their own representative. In her view, this does not give workers and low-paid employees a sufficient voice. She added that Finnbjörn had done many good things.

Sólveig Anna stressed that leaving would be a major, complex undertaking requiring discussion within Efling. “We are not going to make this happen now,” she said, while adding that the situation for Efling inside ASÍ was becoming increasingly difficult. She agreed that class conflict could be fierce within the labour movement itself.