A Historical Legacy Untouched by Time and Space? The Hollowing-out of the Norwegian Model of Industrial Relations

Abstract

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‘Not my task’: Role perceptions in a green transition among shop stewards in the Norwegian petroleum industry

“…The perceived inevitability of the green transition frames Norwegian industrial politics and scripts the roles of the industrial partners as they position themselves for change. The Norwegian industrial relations model ‘is generally thought of as the pinnacle of the welfare state, a reason why Norway is not severely hit by crises, [and] is highly adaptable’ (Bergene and Hansen, 2016, p. 5). Admittedly, the robustness of the Norwegian model, with wage coordination, counter-cyclical state interventions and welfare state cushioning, also rests on the large petroleum incomes (Dølvik and Oldervoll, 2019).…”

“…Admittedly, the robustness of the Norwegian model, with wage coordination, counter-cyclical state interventions and welfare state cushioning, also rests on the large petroleum incomes (Dølvik and Oldervoll, 2019). High labour participation and a well-regulated labour market are hallmarks of the Norwegian model, premised on high levels of unionisation, coordinated bargaining and centralised agreements (Bergene and Hansen, 2016; Dølvik and Oldervoll, 2019; Falkum, 2020).…”

“…Good cooperative labour relations at the workplace level may prove necessary ‘to engage in demanding and potentially risky processes of innovative adjustment’ needed for a green transition (Dølvik and Steen, 2018). However, this level is also arguably most fragile and contested arena in the Norwegian model (Bergene and Hansen, 2016). For the purposes of this article, the shop steward role forms the point of departure in our exploration of role perceptions in a green transition.…”

Codetermination and Power in the Workplace

“…Meanwhile, in the Netherlands and the Nordic countries, this boost to worker power came through the establishment of national frameworks for negotiation and collective agreement between powerful union associations and employer associations, for example, via the Danish Constitution of the Labor Market negotiated in 1899, the first Dutch national agreement in 1914, the Norwegian Basic Agreement of 1935, and the Swedish Saltsjöbaden Agreement of 1938 (Wheeler 2002;Haug 2004a;Haug 2004b;Trampusch 2006;Bergene and Hansen 2016). Under these frameworks, unions and employer associations met regularly to jointly determine national or industry-level standards for wages and working conditions.…”

Acted upon and acted through: Unions, consent and contestation vis-a-vis High Performance Work Systems in the automobile industry

“…Yet the hegemonic regime also suppressed worker challenges from below while facilitating union promotion of the 'national' interests of capital (Upchurch et al, 2009: 2-3). As Bergene and Hansen's (2016) study of Norwegian trade unions shows, national tripartite co-determination systems drew workers and their unions on both macro-national and micro-workplace scales into negotiating productivity increases such that unions became effectively 'agents of reorganization' (Bergene and Hansen, 2016: 15).…”