Danish trade unions

Trade unions play a central role in the Danish labour market by safeguarding the professional interests of their members and negotiating collective agreements with employers. A collective agreement is an agreement on wages and working conditions that ensures orderly conditions at the workplace.

The unions work to secure good conditions in the labour market, and that all employees are covered by a collective agreement. This includes, amongst other things:

• Negotiation of workplace pay and conditions
• Assistance in cases of health and safety at work, holidays, maternity leave, termination of employment, etc.
• Advice in the case of conflicts at the workplace
• Information on your rights and obligations as an employee.

If you experience problems with your working conditions, you can obtain advice through the union that covers your field.

Local union branches are organised into trade unions, which in turn are members of a confederation. The confederations negotiate general terms with the employers' organisations and represent the trade union movement at national level.

The two largest confederations in Denmark are:

• The Danish Trade Union Confederation (Fagbevægelsens Hovedorganisation: FH): Represents skilled, semi-skilled and lower-tier salaried employees in both the public and private sector
• The Danish Confederation of Professional Associations (Akademikerne: AC): Represents university graduates in both the public and private sector

If you are in doubt about which trade union or confederation covers your area of employment, you can contact one of the confederations for guidance.

You pay a membership fee as a member of a Danish trade union. As an employee, you are entitled to a tax deduction for part of this amount. The deduction is usually automatically reported to the Danish Tax Agency and will appear in your preliminary income assessment and tax assessment notice.

You can read more and find the current maximum deductions at skat.dk.