Part of a trade organisation
The Danish labour market differs from that of other EU countries in that it is largely regulated by voluntary agreements between employer and employee organisations.
The state does not interfere with the agreements made by the two sides of industry in the various occupational areas as long as they do not undermine the rights embodied by legislation.
Organisation
The reason the Danish model is so effective is that all the parties involved are organised in some way. Most employers belong to an employers’ association that handles negotiations for them and provides advice on a daily basis, while about 80% of Danish employees are members of a trade union that safeguards their rights and interests.
FOA, The Care and Service Union
FOA will often be a natural choice of trade union for you when you get a job in the Danish public-sector job market.
The large majority of the union’s 200,000 members are engaged in delivering public services such as:
• caring for children
• caring for patients in hospitals and nursing homes
• manning emergency services, firefighting, for example
• providing help and services to elderly and disabled people
• driving buses
• cleaning and catering in hospitals, elderly centres, schools and barracks
• inspecting and maintaining buildings
Your local FOA branch
FOA consists of 43 local branches and when you join the trade union, you become part of a trade organisation that not only protects your general interests in work and pay negotiations but also plays a role in your daily working life.
Every day your local trade union branch deals with questions about the workplace; mediates if conflicts arise; advises members on employment funds, education and other issues; and handles local negotiations with your employer if you have been hired via a private temping agency rather than direct by a local authority.
Your local branch is also ready to help you with practical issues that you might encounter as a foreigner new to Denmark. You can discuss and get advice on private issues such as finding accommodation and settling into your local community.
Union representative (TR)
A union representative is elected from among employees organised under the union to protect colleagues’ interests in local negotiations and if problems arise in the workplace.
Health and safety representative (SR)
It is the employer’s responsibility to ensure that the work does not cause employees to fall ill or feel their wellbeing is impaired. But employees also share this responsibility, and workplaces with more than 10 people on the payroll are required to set up an internal safety organisation where management and staff work together to ensure a good, healthy working environment.
Your influence on the workplace
MED is an acronym for the Danish terms for workers’ co-determination and participation. Management and staff members of the MED committee make agreements about matters relevant to conditions in the workplace.
If you are looking for a job in Denmark in these areas
- care of the elderly, sick and disabled
- children and young people
- catering and cleaning services
- technical and maintenance services