labour
Forestry unions ballot for a winter strike over pay
The Severnivaraje cooperative and two sister unions have opened ballots on a walkout that would close the northern timber route.
The Severnivaraje Forestry Cooperative and two sister unions opened strike ballots on Tuesday after the haulage association tabled a pay offer below the rate agreed in the 2022 settlement.
The ballot closes on 8 October. A yes vote would halt timber movements on the Bistrica road and the mountain rail spur, the route that carries most northern softwood to the mills at Bistrica and Dvor. The cooperative has not struck since 1996.
The Independent Trade Union of the North is supporting the ballot but has not called its own members out. The haulage association said it would return to talks if the unions accepted a two-year rather than three-year term.