Swedish Municipal Workers' Union
Encyclopedia
The Swedish Municipal Workers' Union is the largest trade union
in Sweden
with 570 000 members as of 2005, it was created 1910. It is commonly referred to as Kommunal.
The majority of members are employed by varying local level municipalities.
Farm workers and co-operatives are also commonly found in this union.
Some professions that this union represents are:
The union leader since 1996 is Ylva Thörn.
As of 2005, 80% of the union's members are female. A third is under 30 years of age. This is attributed to the representation of welfare jobs such as child and elderly care workers.
In recent history, this union has called two major strikes.
Kommunal is a member of International Transport Workers' Federation
(ITF), International Union of Food, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco and Allied Workers' Association (IUF) and Public Services International
(PSI).
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
in Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
with 570 000 members as of 2005, it was created 1910. It is commonly referred to as Kommunal.
The majority of members are employed by varying local level municipalities.
Farm workers and co-operatives are also commonly found in this union.
Some professions that this union represents are:
- ChildcareChildcareChild care means caring for and supervising child/children usually from 0–13 years of age. In the United States child care is increasingly referred to as early childhood education due to the understanding of the impact of early experiences of the developing child...
employees - BusBusA bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. Buses can have a capacity as high as 300 passengers. The most common type of bus is the single-decker bus, with larger loads carried by double-decker buses and articulated buses, and smaller loads carried by midibuses and minibuses; coaches are...
drivers - AmbulanceAmbulanceAn ambulance is a vehicle for transportation of sick or injured people to, from or between places of treatment for an illness or injury, and in some instances will also provide out of hospital medical care to the patient...
drivers - FirefighterFirefighterFirefighters are rescuers extensively trained primarily to put out hazardous fires that threaten civilian populations and property, to rescue people from car incidents, collapsed and burning buildings and other such situations...
s - Elderly care workers
The union leader since 1996 is Ylva Thörn.
As of 2005, 80% of the union's members are female. A third is under 30 years of age. This is attributed to the representation of welfare jobs such as child and elderly care workers.
In recent history, this union has called two major strikes.
- From September 28 to October 20, 1995 a strike was called that affected the sports industry workers in Sweden greatly. major league soccer and hockeyHockeyHockey is a family of sports in which two teams play against each other by trying to maneuver a ball or a puck into the opponent's goal using a hockey stick.-Etymology:...
was not able to start until the issue was resolved. - Another strike was called in 2003, this time mainly affecting childcare workers. The Firefighters got a worse deal after the strike, so there is talk among them to form an independent union.
Kommunal is a member of International Transport Workers' Federation
International Transport Workers' Federation
The International Transport Workers' Federation is a global union federation of transport workers' trade unions, founded in 1896. In 2009 the ITF had 654 member organizations in 148 countries, representing a combined membership of 4.5 million workers....
(ITF), International Union of Food, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco and Allied Workers' Association (IUF) and Public Services International
Public Services International
Public Services International is a global union federation of public sector trade unions. It 620 affiliated unions, in 160 countries, representing 20 million workers...
(PSI).