In December 2019, the Cultural Committee in Ystad decided to dismiss and release the security guards with immediate effect. They would be allowed to keep their pay until January 5, and then the service and payout would cease.

According to the Cultural Committee, the decision was about deficiencies in the working environment.

- It was a bit strange that the message came a few days after we had sued them the first time. If it was about the working environment they could have closed immediately after the protection round which was in October, says Ludvig Olsson, hit tower guard.

"We just want to keep working"

The conflict between the tower guards and Ystad municipality has been prolonged. Initially, it was about disagreements about one of the guards' forms of employment, where the municipality, for its part, considered that the tower guard was an hourly employee, while the union believed he was permanently employed.

Now the tower guards are fighting to get their jobs back.

- It is a bit of a shame when the municipality says it is very important for Ystad with the tower guards and at the same time dismisses us. If you love the tradition, it would be good if we could cooperate, says Ludvig Olsson.

Requires large damages

In the new lawsuit filed with the Labor Court on January 22, the syndicalist union KYDS wants the dismissals to be annulled and a damages of SEK 150,000 each paid to former tower guards Ludvig Olsson and Roland Borg.

- We want to highlight that it is bad and that the municipality has made a serious mistake. We have talked about how the money could go to a repair fund for the church, says Ludvig Olsson.

The union also wants the two tower guards to continue working until the dispute is settled.