Stridsåtgärder och konkurrerande fackförbund i den svenska modellen - en studie om organisationstvister som mynnar ut i stridsåtgärder

Sammanfattning: The aim of this essay is to seek understanding about why conflicts appear between trade unions regarding which one of them should sign the collective agreement in the workplace. The labour market parties are in general in an agreement that there should only be one applicable collective agreement in every area of work. The unique effects of the collective agreement make it crucial for the trade unions to be a part of it. The collective agreement dictates the standards of the Swedish labour market and legislation generally assumes that there is an applicable collective agreement between the counterparts. When conflicts arise because of the question which of the trade unions should sign the agreement, there are generally three parties involved: one employer and two trade unions. The conflict is then regarding which one of the trade unions that should have the right to organise and the right to the agreement. These types of conflicts can have their background in different factors. One of these factors can be contradictions in ideology between two competing trade unions which are particularly cumbersome to solve. The established organisations LO, TCO and Saco have principles of organisation that are guiding in which trade unions that should organise and sign the collective agreements in that area of work. Concrete tools to handle a conflict between an established trade union and a detached trade union are still missing though. The essay describes the Swedish labour market and its organisational structures, how the trade unions have split the labour market into sections among themselves in order to sort out the right to organise workers and which one of them has the right to sign the collective agreement. Further, the Swedish labour market and the collective agreement as a central part in that model is discussed and also the meaning of the collective agreements for trade unions that are part of an agreement and those that are not. Finally, the essay examines the right to go on strike according to Swedish legislation and also the investigation that the government appointed regarding the aims of the trade unions right to strike against an employer that already has an applicable collective agreement with another trade union.