A steady stream of visitors - including tourists from other countries - were met by strike guards when they visited Uppsala Cathedral on Friday.
But they did not get into it.
Kommunal has taken out the three caretakers on strike, which means that the 119-meter-high building is closed to visitors.
When SVT is on site, an elderly lady is upset when she learns that it is not possible to enter the church.
- This is the first reaction I got where someone got really sad.
Otherwise, I have mostly heard: "stand on you" and the like, says Patrik Sköldberg, strike guard at the municipal.
Worship services and all activities in the cathedral are also currently canceled.
How long it lasts remains to be seen.
- It is an impossible question to answer, says Patrik Sköldberg.
Conflict over agreement
The notice of strike affects about 500 employees within the Church of Sweden and is due to a conflict between the union and the church's employers' organization.
The union believes that it is about having equal adjustment opportunities as many others in the labor market, without agreeing to the terms of the agreements deteriorating.
The employer says that the proposed agreement is too expensive and that the parishes cannot afford it.
-It is always the last resort, but obviously the employer thinks that it should have a special position in the labor market and we can not accept that, says Malin Ragnegård, union chairman of Kommunal ..
- In a negotiation, you have to give and take, but there is also a limit to how expensive an agreement can be.
The Church of Sweden's activities are financed by membership fees and many congregations have very scarce resources, says Cecilia Herm, chief negotiator at the Church of Sweden's employers' organization in a press release.
In the clip: Here, strike guards stop visitors from entering the cathedral.