Participation in survey three times higher than ever – highest among foreign members

The processing of responses in the Efling survey of conditions and opinions which closed last week has begun. 4562 members answered the survey, which is many times more participation than in similar surveys held by the union.

In older surveys the highest number of participants was in 2016 when it was 1294, but it should be considered that in prior surveys the sample was much smaller, as small as 3000, and surveys in some cases included members of other unions in Southwest Iceland. Opening the sample to all Efling members made much higher participation possible this time.

Participation in Efling survey from 2014:

Year Number of answers 
2014 1122 
2015 997 
2016 1294 
2017 1193 
2018 1016 
2022 4562 

The decision to translate the survey into the 10 most common languages of members had a greatly positive impact on the participation. The sample was nearly 36 thousand kennitalas and the total response ratio was 12,79%. The participation of members of Icelandic origin was just under this ratio or 12%, whereas it was much higher among many groups of foreign members. Here are response ratios for selected groups of immigrant members which were above average:

Country Ratio Number of answers 
Philippines 25% 96 
Thailand 24% 51 
Vietnam 22% 56 
Lithuania 16% 295 
Portugal 15% 53 
Poland 15% 941 
Latvia 14% 126 

“With a changed methodology we have managed to get many times better participation of members in this survey, which is super important for preparing our demands for collective bargaining. All members could participate in the survey online in 10 different languages. This has delivered definite success. I can’t describe how happy I am about the high response ratio of immigrant members. They have most definitely shown that they are going to make their voices heard in the coming negotiations,” said Sólveig Anna Jónsdóttir chairman of Efling. 

The results of the survey will be presented as soon as they are ready.