ASÍ candidate warns Efling’s possible exit is serious

Georg Páll Skúlason, a candidate for president of the Icelandic Confederation of Labour (ASÍ), says he takes seriously statements by Efling union chair Sólveig Anna Jónsdóttir about the union possibly leaving the confederation. He spoke to mbl.is at the ASÍ congress on Wednesday.

Georg Páll said each union decides for itself whether to belong to ASÍ, but experience shows that leaving can have lasting consequences. He cited the experience of the Bookmakers’ Association, now called GRAFÍA, a union for workers in printing and media, which remained outside ASÍ for 23 years.

After the union decided to seek readmission, it took three years and three membership-wide ballots to reach agreement, he said. “This is a big issue, and everyone needs to proceed very carefully,” Georg Páll said.

Asked how he would address disagreements within ASÍ if elected president, he said dialogue and solidarity were essential. “We have many, many more issues that unite us than divide us,” he said.

The dispute also involves a proposal from ASÍ’s central committee to reduce the number of vice-presidents from three to one. Georg Páll said the confederation had previously had one vice-president, while there have been three for the past six years. He said the increase was partly connected to ASÍ’s representation of workers, retail employees and tradespeople.

He said it was reasonable to seek a solution to the disagreement, but reducing the number of vice-presidents was not necessarily the key to resolving it. Georg Páll added that while disputes regularly arise at ASÍ congresses, representatives can often find common ground on policy and reach compromises.