New law restricts temporary employment in the public sector

At workAt work.Photo: pixabay.com

The government has introduced an amendment which restricts the ability to use temporary employment in the public sector.

‘High use of temporary employment in the state sector, and especially at colleges and universities, has been a topic of discussion for many years.

Now we are going to do something about it’, said Local Government and Modernization Minister, Jan Tore Sanner, who, along with Minister Torbjørn Røe Isaksen, proposed that the law, called ‘Employee of the State’ should come into force before Easter.

The law will replace the current Public Servants Act, wrote Dagbladet newspaper.

In the new Act, which includes temporary employees in the public sector, workers have the right to permanent employment after three years working in the private sector, instead of four years as it is today.

‘We are very pleased that this has been successful, and that the law in the public sector has been harmonized with the Working Environment Act’, said Petter Aaslestad, the leader of Forskerforbundet (NAR).

Earlier this month, Klassekampen newspaper wrote that the proportion of temporary employees in the Norwegian labour force aged between 15 and 74, was 8.2 % in the fourth quarter of last year, but during the same period, there were 19.7 % working at higher education institutions. For some faculties, the proportion of temporary employees was up to 36 and 44 %.

 

Source: NTB scanpix / Norway Today