KS settlement underway: Expertise must pay off
Learn what happens when, why this year's settlement is extra demanding, and what NITO requires for you who work in the municipal sector.
On Friday 10 April at 12 noon, the central negotiations with KS began. Only members in teaching positions, those who belong to Chapter 4 of the Basic Collective Agreement, have their salaries determined in the central negotiations.
Nevertheless, the start-up is important for all NITO's members in municipalities and county authorities. This is a main settlement and the entire agreement system is on the negotiating table. The result for teaching staff in the central negotiations is also something many will look forward to when the local negotiations start later this year.
Important dates in the settlement
| Date | What's going on? |
| April 10 | The central negotiations start |
| 30 April at 24.00 | Deadline for the central negotiations |
| May 7 | Start-up mediation if the parties do not agree |
| 28 May at 24.00 | Deadline for agreeing on a possible mediation |
| May 29 | First possible strike day if mediation does not succeed |
| Early summer and into autumn | Local negotiations in the individual municipalities and county authorities |
This year's main settlement is set to be the most complicated in many years. The negotiations are taking place at a time of tight municipal finances in many places. In addition, both the main agreement and several special agreements have been included in the main settlement.
Gro Gaarder, Head of NITO Municipality
The main agreement lays down the rules of the game for the cooperation between management and union representatives. It is usually not part of the main settlement, but became so after Akademikerne and KS did not reach an agreement during the negotiations last winter. The same applies to several special agreements, including on working hours for teaching staff.
"This makes this year's negotiations even more complicated than a normal main settlement, where only the provisions of the Basic Collective Agreement and wages for the members are negotiated in Chapter 4," Gaarder explains.
This is important for NITO
NITO enters the negotiations with a number of demands on behalf of its members. Some are about more technical things in the agreement, while others are very specific. It is about competence and preparedness, local pots for teachers, pensions on on-call supplements and ensuring real local negotiations.
Expertise is crucial for emergency preparedness
The local government sector faces major tasks and changes ahead. The municipalities are completely dependent on attracting and retaining the right expertise to solve these tasks. This is particularly important with regard to preparedness, which is in strong focus in the total defence year 2026.
"We expect real wage growth that will make the local government sector an attractive employer and acquire the necessary expertise. Salaries are still an important personnel policy instrument to ensure that the municipalities can deliver the services that citizens expect," says Gaarder.
Real wage growth and local pot for teachers
NITO expects real wage growth for members in teaching positions. A local pot must be set aside for this group as well. It is locally at the individual school that education, knowledge and efforts can best be valued.
Pensionable on-call supplement
An important principle and financial requirement is that all on-call supplements must be pensionable. This is about fairness and long-term financial security for members who are on call schemes.
Ensure real local negotiations
Most of NITO's members in KS have their salaries determined through local negotiations, anchored in chapters 3 and 5 of the Basic Collective Agreement. Since this is a main settlement, the negotiation provisions themselves will also be revised.
NITO demands that the practice of these provisions must ensure genuine local negotiations. The central parties have a great responsibility to facilitate good and free negotiations, which are in fact based on the agreed criteria in the Basic Collective Agreement.
"The important thing here is that there are free and genuine negotiations where the central negotiations in chapter 4 do not become a conclusion, but one of several considerations," Gaarder concludes.
Preparations start now
Even though the local negotiations will not take place until the autumn, it is important that union representatives start preparations already now. Stay tuned to nito.no for ongoing updates in the coming weeks.
For union representatives: Guide to local wage negotiations in the municipality
Understanding the agreements in the municipality
Hva er hovedtariffavtalen?
Hovedtariffavtalen inneholder rettighetene og spillereglene for lønn og andre økonomiske rettigheter. Den bestemmer blant annet hvordan lønnsutviklingen skal skje, både i de sentrale forhandlingene og lokalt på din arbeidsplass.
Hva er hovedavtalen?
Hovedavtalen handler om medbestemmelse på arbeidsplassen, ikke om lønn. Den gir spillereglene for samarbeidet mellom ledelsen og de tillitsvalgte, og inneholder bestemmelser om personalpolitikk og hvordan omstillinger skal håndteres.
Hva er kapittel 3, 4 og 5?
Dette er ulike deler av hovedtariffavtalen som bestemmer hvordan lønnen din forhandles.
- Kapittel 3 gjelder ledere, som får fastsatt sin lønn i lokale forhandlinger.
- Kapittel 4 gjelder blant annet undervisningspersonell, og her forhandles lønnen sentralt.
- Kapittel 5 gjelder de fleste ingeniører og teknologer i kommunen. Her fastsettes hele lønnen gjennom lokale forhandlinger i den enkelte kommune.
Hva er en særavtale?
Særavtaler er avtaler som regulerer spesifikke forhold som ikke dekkes av hovedtariffavtalen. Eksempler på dette er avtaler om arbeidstøy, reiseregulativ, pensjonsordninger eller arbeidstid for spesifikke yrkesgrupper.
Særavtaler kan være sentrale eller lokale. I hovedoppgjøret er det sentrale særavtaler som er tatt inn i forhandlingene. Lokale særavtaler forhandles i din virksomhet for å regulere lokale forhold.
