Deadlock in negotiations in the security guarding sector – pay rises a particular sticking point
The guards have been longing for a negotiating result, but there was no conclusion today either. Photo: GettyImages.
Negotiations in the security guarding sector continued today in a downbeat atmosphere. PAM’s negotiators were surprised by the cool reception given by the employers’ federation.
Service Sector Employers Palta is not prepared to consider reasonable pay rises. PAM’s chief negotiator Jyrki Sinkkonen and PAM’s collective bargaining specialist Markku Saikkonen described the day’s negotiating atmosphere as unusual.
The situation at present is in deadlock, and it’s unclear where we go from here. Wages are very much a sticking point. Palta and PAM have very diverging views on the level of pay rises.
PAM’s starting point from the word go has been to get a reasonable pay rise for members in the collective agreement negotiations and clear improvements to the text of the agreement. The plan was to go through the cost impact of wages in more detail during the day, but Palta was unwilling to comment on the pay rise formation presented by PAM.
“We are very disappointed because what we are asking for is not unreasonable. Palta is not showing enough willingness to accept reasonable pay rises”, says Sinkkonen.
The negotiations have not broken down, but no further meetings have been agreed.
“Our objective all the time is to make progress in the negotiations,” Saikkonen says.
The collective agreement for the security guarding sector is negotiated by PAM and Palta.