“Women workers will never be free from exploitation if we act as though the problems that affect their lives are individual,” said Sólveig Anna Jónsdóttir, chair of Efling, in a speech on the situation of migrant Efling women. Sólveig Anna delivered the speech at the seminar Modern Women’s Struggle – The Position of Women of Foreign Origin in the Labour Market, organised by the Icelandic Confederation of Labour (ASÍ) on the occasion of the Women’s Strike 2025. In her speech, she discussed class division, exploitation, and women workers’ fight for justice, rejecting the view that migrant people are responsible for their own position in the labour market.
“The problem is not the people themselves”
“Women workers will never be free from exploitation if we act as though the problems that affect their lives are individual,” Sólveig Anna said.
She criticised the idea that migrant people “get stuck” in low-wage jobs because of their education or language skills. Such discourse, she said, “provides an excuse for politicians and employers not to acknowledge that the real problem is systemic.”
“The problem is not the people themselves but the system of exploitation that relies on the work of indispensable women in essential jobs,” Sólveig Anna said. “The ruling class knows this, and the labour movement knows it too – even if it sometimes does not want to face it.”
Free movement of labour – a method to keep wages low
Sólveig Anna said that free movement of labour within Europe has been used to secure the interests of capitalists.
“Free movement is about providing employers with access to a large pool of multinational labour that literally has to be moved between countries to find a place where work is available,” she said. “The model wants to be able to move large groups of working people between nation-states – like pieces on a chessboard.”
“Women’s social liberation rests on the exploitation of women”
She criticised the idea of a Nordic equality paradise:
“Women’s social liberation rests on the exploitation and overwork of women. […] The labour market depends on the abuse of one class of women – a class of low-paid women with low social status,” she said.
Efling builds its strength from the grassroots
Sólveig Anna described how Efling has chosen to build the union from the grassroots:
“We genuinely believe in inclusion. We reject being office bureaucrats who fear democratic participation by members. Everything we do is based on the opinions and vision of Efling members.”
She referenced research showing that members experience Efling as their own community and that the union’s strength is built “from the bottom up.”
Efling members fight together
Finally, she called for solidarity within the working class:
“We have seen that success is achieved by doing the opposite. It is not Efling men who have been in constant anxiety since the 2019 krona agreements led to the largest increase in purchasing power for women and migrants,” she said.
“Icelandic Efling women stand with migrant Efling women, and Efling women and men stand together and fight together.”