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Norway’s railway workers win better protection against violence

8 May 2009

Railway workers in Norway have won improved protection against violence at work, following their unions’ lobbying efforts.

Workers represented by two ITF-affiliates, Norsk Jernbaneforbund and Norsk Lokomotivmannsforbund, successfully won an amendment to existing criminal law after the union engaged the government in talks to improve the plight of railway workers who were experiencing increasing violence, particularly at night. The amendment comes into force before July and is set to extend protection to workers in the private sector, including railway, bus, metro and taxi firms. Previously, only state-owned companies’ workers were covered.

Øystein Aslaksen, president of the ITF-affiliated Norsk Lokomotivmannsforbund and ITF railway section chair said: "Many unions from different industrial sectors have been working on this. For the railway unions it has been important to achieve the same protection for workers employed in a private company as they would have had when these companies were state-owned. In this respect, this is an important achievement, neutralising one of the negative effects of privatisation."

Both unions’ members were among numerous transport unions across the world participating in the ITF’s railway action day to stamp out workplace violence last week on 28 April. They distributed leaflets to bus and rail passengers in the south eastern area of Norway.

Other unions’ actions on railway action day included: a demonstration in Karachi organised by a Pakistani union, where presentations were given on the need to protect workers against violence and for railway operators to work with the unions to find appropriate solutions; a presentation of information on the ITF’s anti-violence campaign to the transport minister by a Colombian trade union and a gathering held east of Kampala organised by a Ugandan union and attended by some 200 workers and union supporters, where safety issues were discussed. 

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