The Efling negotiation committee for nursing home workers has notified the Federation of Welfare Service Providers (SFV) of the termination of their collective agreement. The termination is based on a contingency clause in the collective agreement between Efling and SFV.
Sólveig Anna Jónsdóttir, chair of Efling, along with the union’s negotiation committee, informed SFV representatives of this decision today at a meeting held at the office of the State mediator. The agreement will be terminated as of May 1st, but negotiations for a new agreement can begin without delay.
The contingency clause in question required a concrete and time-bound plan to meet the established staffing standards in nursing homes. However, a working group appointed by the Minister of Health, which included representatives from Efling, SFV, the Icelandic Health Insurance, the Ministry of Health, and others, failed to produce such a plan. Instead, it only submitted a memorandum on February 18th of this year.
Improving staffing levels was Efling’s primary demand in negotiations with nursing homes rather than wage increases, and the union did not deviate from the wage policy set in the general labor market agreements of April 2024. It was a milestone achievement that the issue of staffing was directly addressed in the contingency clause of the collective agreement signed with SFV on October 2, 2024. However, it is now evident that this clause has not been fulfilled.
As a result, in May, 2,300 Efling members—primarily women in historically undervalued female-dominated jobs—will be without a valid collective agreement.
Sólveig Anna Jónsdóttir, chair of Efling, expressed disappointment with the situation:
“Myself and the negotiation committee deeply regret that we have reached this point. We had high hopes that the severe understaffing issues in nursing homes could be addressed. The current situation places an immense burden of responsibility on Efling members, who are effectively performing tasks that should be carried out by trained professionals. These workers form a large group of essential staff. Now we are resuming collective bargaining, and there is no time to waste.”