Timely All-night Talks Avoided Scheduled Norwegian Strike

Norwegian trade unions federation LO and employers' organisation NHO reached a deal in all-night talks, averting an industrial strike narrowly before it was scheduled on April 2, said officials. The strike would have caused a loss of 900,000 tons aluminum and Hydro should have to close its four smelters. It is said the deal was set at a pay rise of 5.6 percent and included an agreement on a voluntary early retirement scheme. The deal was backed by the YS union federation, which had also threatened to strike. "We are very satisfied," Roar Flaathen, LO federation chief said on radio news, referring in particular to the pay increase and a deal on pensions. More than 40,000 workers in a range of industries from fish to aluminium production had been set to go on strike from 04:00 GMT if no deal had been reached. LO and NHO said in statements on their Web sites that the agreement would give a general pay increase of 2 crowns ($0.388) per hour and an extra rise of 3 crowns per hour for certain low-income workers. "The agreement will give LO members solid real wage growth and the most to the lowest-paid," LO said in a statement.