Swedish Company Refuses To Bargain With Union On Religious Grounds

Labor relations in Sweden are largely governed by the "Saltsjöbaden agreement", an agreement on collective bargaining between the Confederation of Labor Unions and the Swedish Employers Federation. However Ji-Ma Produkter, wood packaging company owned by members of the Plymouth Brethren religious movement, is refusing on Biblical grounds to enter into a collective bargaining agreement with the Swedish Forest and Wood Workers' Union. The company points to 2 Corinthians 6:14: "Do not be yoked together with unbelievers." Sweden's The Local earlier this week reported on the strike against the company called by the union in October. Neither side foresees an end to the controversy.