Originally Posted by
CPH-Flyer
The cabin crew in Norway were not laid off per se, they were sent on unpaid leave. But only in Norway, seemingly Norway has legal ways of doing that during a strike.
The cabin crew (and others) are sent on the dole, to use a British term. They are sent on unpaid leave by the employer, but will get full unemployment compensation by the state. This is lower than their salary. They need to be able and willing to take other employment during that time, but they will be reinstated automatically when SAS resumes business as usual.
This unpaid leave can also be used in other situations. When a shipbuilder doesn't have any new contracts, but might get one some months ahead, the employees might be sent on unpaid leave, yhe logic being that it is cheaper and better for society to pay unemployment benefits for a period, rather than having the company go bankrupt, which might be mor expensive for society and the common purse.