News - 16.06.2025
Wages must increase by at least ISK 150,000 per month if the Icelandic Chamber of Commerce has its way
The Board of VR is baffled by the Icelandic Chamber of Commerce's attack on the housing associations Bjarg and Blær, whose aim is to ensure secure and affordable rental housing for individuals and families.
When Blær, a housing foundation established by VR, handed over its first apartment earlier this year, the new tenant had previously experienced a rent increase from ISK 260,000 to ISK 430,000 per month in just four years. Certainly, this benefits the owners of such rental properties who are then able to raise rents as they wish, but no ordinary working person can afford such a rise in rental costs. The Icelandic Chamber of Commerce serves the interests of landlords who profit from the weak protection of tenants and developers who can sell properties to rental companies at inflated prices, while showing no concern for the many people in need of secure rental housing.
A moderate rental market affects the housing market in general. If profit-driven interests are allowed to dominate the rental sector, it drives up housing prices for the general public and thereby contributes to inflation and poorer living conditions. For this reason, one of the duties of government—both here and elsewhere—is to support a regulated rental market that prioritizes housing security.
As an example, a tenant at Bjarg typically pays more than a third less in rent than the market rate, as the housing is intended for individuals and families in lower income brackets. The difference in rent burden can amount to up to ISK 100,000 per month when compared to the average rental price in the capital area, according to the latest monthly report from HMS. A tenant at Blær, where there are no income limits, can expect to pay approximately 15% less than the market rate.
If the Icelandic Chamber of Commerce succeeds in its attack on people’s housing security, the labour movement will inevitably have to demand at least an additional ISK 150,000 increase in monthly wages in the next collective bargaining agreements. That money will go directly from wage earners and businesses into the pockets of profit-driven developers and rental companies.
The Board of VR asks whether companies such as Ölgerðin, Festi, Icelandair, Kerecis, Sýn, Landsbankinn, and Efla—and all the other companies that are members of the Icelandic Chamber of Commerce—are prepared to go down that path. The reality is that the residents of Bjarg and Blær are wage earners who contribute substantially to the success of these very companies and play an essential role in maintaining the societal institutions we all depend on.
What do the representatives of the above-mentioned companies who make up the executive board of the Icelandic Chamber of Commerce—Andri Þór Guðmundsson, Ásta S. Fjeldsted, Bogi Nils Bogason, Guðmundur Fertram, Herdís Dröfn Fjeldsted, Lilja Björk Einarsdóttir, and Sæmundur Sæmundsson—have to say? Is this attack done with your support?
The Board of VR demands clear answers from the 37 companies that hold seats on the board of the Icelandic Chamber of Commerce.
The Board of VR, June 16, 2025
