After meeting on Monday, the board of the umbrella trade union federation SAK said that member unions had agreed to implement blockades to prevent Posti from using the services of workers provided by temp agencies such as SOL.
SAK described as unscrupulous Posti’s plan to use outsourced labour in the event that postal workers went on strike over their ongoing collective bargaining dispute.
"If Posti uses temporary outsourced workers to perform the duties of workers during the work stoppage planned on November 19 by the Post and Logistics Union, SAK will discontinue negotiations to find a common labour market solution (to boost national competitiveness). SAK will only be ready to resume negotiations when Posti stops using temporary workers to impede the strike," SAK said in a statement.
SAK is currently involved in talks with private sector employer representatives to come up with alternatives to government’s plan to achieve a five percent increase in national competitiveness by legislating a number of pay reforms.
SAK: Use of strikebreakers unprecedented
SAK chair Lauri Lyly told Yle that the negotiations with Posti to resolve an ongoing dispute with workers had been "solution oriented" but that principle was at stake. He noted that the use of strikebreakers in Finland would be unprecedented.
"We see this as highly unusual. You have to remember that the temporary employment agency organisation has said that that it is not the role of temporary workers to undermine strike action," he added.
On Monday state mediator Minna Helle continued talks with the parties to the dispute - Palta, the organisation representing service sector employers and the PAU - but without result. They were set to resume discussions Tuesday. If they are unable to reach an accord, postal workers will go on strike from Thursday.
Private sector business lobby: SAK irresponsible
Meanwhile the private sector business lobby EK described SAK’s statements as irresponsible. Commenting in a statement, EK director Ilkka Oksala said that the ongoing labour market negotiations - aimed at finding an alternative solution to Prime Minister Juha Sipilä’s raft of work compensation reforms – should not be jeopardized over the industrial dispute with Posti.
"These (Posti) negotiations are taking place under the leadership of the state mediator. EK doesn’t think there is any justification for external parties to embark on blockade actions or any other similar procedures to influence the collective bargaining process," Oksala concluded.
