Public Overwhelmingly Supports Union Demands

A new Gallup poll shows the general public not only supports union demands to raise the minimum wage – they would demand even more than unions are asking.

MBL reports that, according to the results of a new poll from Gallup, 91.6% of those surveyed support the primary demand of the Federation of General and Special Workers in Iceland (SGS) to raise the minimum wage for their workers to 300,000 ISK per month over the next three years. Only 4.2% were against the demand.

In addition, respondents were asked what they believe the minimum wage for full time work on the Icelandic labour market should be. According to the results, the spectrum averaged out to 329,000 ISK per month, exceeding the demands SGS workers have put forward to management.

As reported last week, 94.6% of SGS’s workers voted in favour of a series of work stoppages throughout April and May, culminating in a general strike on May 26. Shortly thereafter, more unions joined the fray. In all, some 56,000 workers could strike this month.

Currently, the base salary of an SGS worker is 201,317 ISK, raising to 214,000 after four months’ work. Most workers will not see more than 222,030 per month after seven years on the job.