The Royal Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Oslo
Press Division

Norway Daily No. 98/02

DATE: 30 May 2002

Dagsavisen’s journalists strike for first time in 117 years (Dagsavisen)

For the first time in Dagsavisen’s 117-year history, the newspaper’s journalists have gone on strike. The Norwegian Union of Journalists has called its 53 members at the newspaper out on strike following the breakdown of this year’s industry-wide pay negotiations. Citing the newspaper’s fragile financial position, Dagsavisen asked for dispensation from the strike, but had yesterday received no reply from the journalists’ union. Over the next few day Dagsavisen will appear in a reduced form because the work usually done by the striking journalists will be carried out by the editor alone.

DnB Storebrand could be acquisition target (Dagbladet.no)

Norwegian politicians are backing the merger between Den norske Bank (DnB) and Storebrand because it will ensure continued national ownership of the business. But the result could be the exact opposite. Øystein Djupedal of the Socialist Left Party believes that a merger between DnB and Storebrand will make the company a more attractive acquisition target for foreign investors. "We know for sure that the craze for acquisitions has plagued foreign markets for a long time. There is no guarantee that this merger will last for ever. The merger has definitely made the company more attractive in terms of a foreign take-over," said Mr Djupedal.

Storebrand employees optimistic (Klassekampen)

Storebrand’s employees have demanded job guarantees because they fear they will bear the brunt of any redundancies made necessary by the proposed merger with Den norske Bank (DnB), which is by far the larger partner in the deal. DnB’s chief executive Svein Aaser confirmed yesterday that the merger represents a transfer of business under the terms of the Working Environment Act. As a result the dominant party to this merger has indicated it will use different tactics than those employed by SAS when it acquired Braathens. In that case only Braathens employees lost their jobs. Arild Thoresen, senior union representative at Storebrand, has said he feels reassured by what he knows of the merger details.

Redundancies to be avoided (Dagsavisen)

750 jobs will be axed when Den norske Bank (DnB) and Storebrand merge to form a major new financial services group. Svein Aaser, who will take over as chief executive of the new company, expects to be able to avoid redundancies. Employees, however, are not sure they believe management’s assurances that the headcount will be reduced through natural wastage and "voluntary" severance packages. They therefore voted against the merger. According to Mr Aaser, special care will be taken of the employees at Vital’s head offices in Bergen. "We feel we have a special obligation to do so," he said. Vital will disappear as a brand name in the new company’s insurance business to be replaced by Storebrand, which is a market leader in this area.

Nine out of ten newspapers still published (Nationen)

Ninety per cent of the newspapers which have been hit by the journalists’ strike will continue to hit the streets in the next few days, according to a straw poll of 37 newspapers carried out by the Association of Norwegian Editors. But the newspapers are thin, and the publishers will lose money because of the strike. In a stock exchange bulletin, Schibsted, Norway’s largest media concern, says it could lose NOK 5-7 million a day during the strike. Among other things, Schibsted owns the newspapers Aftenposten and Verdens Gang. "For the moment Nationen will continue to be published. We wish the strike to have as little effect as possible on our readers and advertisers," said Nationen’s editor-in-chief and chief executive, Tord Langmoen.

Disagreement over holiday entitlement led to strike (Vårt Land)

The vast majority of Norway’s major newspapers have been hit by the strike called by the Norwegian Union of Journalists. A disagreement over journalists’ holiday entitlement was the most important reason for the breakdown of negotiations on Tuesday night between the Norwegian Union of Journalists and the Norwegian Newspaper Publishers’ Association. 3,300 journalists did not turn up for work as usual yesterday morning. Vårt Land is one of the newspapers affected. The newspaper’s journalists started picketing the entrance to the building early yesterday. Only administrative staff and those employees belonging to the Association of Norwegian Editors were allowed to enter the newspaper’s offices yesterday. It is twelve years since the last journalists’ strike, which only lasted a few days. The financial consequences of the strike vary from newspaper to newspaper. Those with the largest advertising revenues could lose a lot of money if the strike drags on. The two sides seem far apart, and it is not clear how long the conflict will last.

Most abortions (Dagsavisen)

Women from non-Western cultural backgrounds are over-represented in the abortion statistics for Oslo. They make up a quarter of all women seeking an abortion in the capital, but just 15 per cent of the population. A recent survey shows that non-Western women become pregnant more frequently than their ethnic Norwegian counterparts – and give birth to more children. The survey is published in today’s edition of the Journal of the Norwegian Medical Association. It was carried out by a research team from the Women’s Centre at Ullevål Hospital, including Anne Eskild.

Worth Noting

• The military skills of many Norwegian soldiers leave a lot to be desired, according to a survey carried out by the soldiers’ own elected representatives. As many as 14 per cent of them have never taken part in any kind of military exercise. The claim that the Armed Forces are not what they used to be could prove to be more accurate that the top brass would like. (Nationen)
• Dag Arne Kristen, head of the Finance Sector Union of Norway, has attacked the proposed merger between DnB and Storebrand. "This will give a quick profit for some shareholders, while customers and employees will lose out," he said. (Dagsavisen)

Today’s comment from Dagsavisen

Dagsavisen will arrive on our subscribers’ doorsteps today despite the fact that the newspaper’s journalists have gone out on strike. This is a special situation for a newspaper which represents a political tradition in which respect for the rules regulating relations between employees and employers plays an important role – including respect for the right to strike. The journalists’ strike action follows the breakdown of arbitration in this year’s industry-wide negotiations between the Norwegian Union of Journalists and the Norwegian Newspaper Publishers’ Association. As so often in heated labour disputes employees and employers have different interpretations of what the arbitration offer actually contained and why it was not acceptable. Dagsavisen’s justification for continuing publication during the strike is not based on any particular understanding of the breakdown in negotiations or the basis for the strike. The most important reason is that we do not have any other owners than ourselves. No corporation or shareholder benefits from the tiny financial surplus our employees create. We therefore have no one to ask for help to bear the financial losses we will incur if we lose revenues from our subscribers, advertisers or non-subscription sales. Last year Dagsavisen struggled to turn around its financial position. By downsizing and through the hard work of our employees a substantial deficit was turned into a modest profit. If Dagsavisen is now forced to accept a major financial loss, our equity will be eaten up in a very short time, putting jobs and the newspaper’s very existence at risk.