Faroe Islands on Strike

Featured image: Strike post at the docks; Source: Red Flag Denmark

The Red Flag, Denmark, reports, that the Faroe Islands are currently paralyzed by a general strike. The workers from the Faroese trade unions the Faroe Islands Workers’ Union, the Harbor Workers’ Union, the Klaksvík Women’s Workers’ Association and the Klaksvík Workers’ Association have together launched a major strike since May 14, demanding a wage increase of 13 to 15 percent. The striking workers are fish factory workers, cleaners, bus drivers, sanitation workers, dock workers and service industry employees. Together, the striking workers make up 10 percent of the entire population of the Faroe Islands.

This enormous mobilization of the proletariat in the Faroe Islands takes place on top of the inconsistency of “OK24”, which is equivalent to the same corporatist “Danish” or “Nordic” model of the “negotiations” with the bourgeoisie and the bourgeois state. The negotiations broke down on 1 May this year, as no agreement had been reached, after which the general strike began on 14 May.

The consequence of the strike has so far meant that all imports and exports from the country have been put on hold. Transport came to an almost standstill due to the lack of fuel. Most shelves in the supermarkets are now empty. A lot of non-striking workers have to stay at home because several children’s institutions are closing down due to the lack of cleaning and the accumulation of garbage.

Empty shelves; Source: Red Flag Denmark

The country-selling politicians in the Faroe Islands tremble and fear that “the country will be thrown into a free fall”.