The Danes are furious: the government decided to take away the day off because of the Ukrainian conflict

The Danes have been furious over the government’s plan to cancel the public holiday to finance the defense budget amid the Ukrainian conflict. Union leaders say the cancellation of the 18th-century religious holiday poses a threat to the famous Danish welfare model.

The Danish government’s plan to cancel a public holiday to help finance the defense budget amid the conflict in Ukraine threatens Denmark’s cherished welfare model, the country’s largest trade union confederation has warned.

“This is a big threat to the Danish model,” says Lisette Risgaard, head of the FH confederation, which has 1.3 million members in a country of 5.9 million. “Politicians should stay away from labor market problems. If they do so, they will impose their will and violate our agreements,” she told AFP on Wednesday.

The left-wing government coalition, in power since December and led by Social Democrat Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, plans to abolish the religious holiday known as Great Prayer Day, celebrated since the 17th century, according to The Guardian. Originally introduced as a day of prayer, fasting and repentance, it falls on the fourth Friday after Easter and is the usual date for confirmation.

But the government wants to get rid of the public holiday and use the money to increase the defense budget to the NATO target of 2% of GDP by 2030, instead of 2033 as previously planned. The government says the accelerated growth in military spending is necessary because of the conflict in Ukraine. The move is expected to provide the state treasury with an additional DKK 3 billion.

According to the government, the canceled day off will entail an additional 7.4 hours of work per worker. “I don’t think it’s a problem to work an extra day,” says Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen.

“We are facing huge spending on defense and security, healthcare, psychiatry and the green transition,” the head of the Danish government said, presenting the program of the new cabinet to parliament.

The Danes will have to work an extra day, which will be paid by employers. But a public holiday and the wages paid to those who work on that day and those who take the day off are already enshrined in Denmark’s sacred collective wage agreements.

“It’s a public holiday. And, of course, they can say: “OK, we want to cancel it,” argues the head of the trade union Lisette Risgaard. “But then they go against what we agreed on in the negotiations: to have the right to be with their family that day. In our collective wage agreements, there are 600 different ways of determining wages when someone works that day.”

A recent poll by market researchers Epinion found that an overwhelming number of Danes opposed the move, which was not mentioned during last fall’s election campaign. Only 17% supported the plan, while 75% opposed it.

“They interfere with the Danish model,” physiotherapist Pernille Holm told AFP on Thursday. “We have our own way of doing business here in Denmark. We are negotiating with our employer. And the unions are discussing our rights as workers. The government should not do anything without the involvement of these two parties.”

An online petition initiated by the FH confederation has garnered nearly half a million signatures. The Lutheran Church and organizations representing the military also protested the government’s move. “I am furious that they are using the military in this way, saying that the money from public holidays will go to increase the budget,” Jesper Korsgaard Hansen, head of the main trade union representing the military, told BT newspaper.

In parliament, only the three government parties, which have a majority, support this measure. Nine opposition parties, from the far left to the far right, say they will refuse to participate in any new defense policy deal until the government withdraws its plan.

The Danes have a feeling of deja vu, writes The Guardian. Ten years ago, the social democratic government tried to cancel the same public holiday, but abandoned it due to a nationwide outcry.