(tib.dk)

An almost nude, young woman is the eye catcher in the controversial membership drive launched this week by the labor union Forbundet Træ-Industri-Byg (TIB). The campaign is supposed to make the union appear “funny, bold, and different.”

In another of the campaign’s ads is a half naked man pictured. In addition to the newspaper ads, the labor union will run radio ads all week.

Reflects the times

According to Arne Johansen, the organizations foreman, a sexy labor union is an organization apart of the times we live in. The picture of a woman at a workshop wearing only a tool belt is supposed to put the organization in a modern light.

Johansen said to the Norwegian newspaper Bergens Tidende that they discussed the case thoroughly before they decided to picture naked breasts in their campaign.

“Some would say that we went too far, but we have created an eye catcher that we think some is interested in looking at,” Johansen said to the paper.

Critical

Kvindelig Arbejdsforbund (KAD), the Danish female labor organization, is not impressed by the new campaign.

“There are problems connected to the use of a naked woman as an eye catcher. They are using a woman’s body to create attention about themselves. This is a sexualizing public space,” said Jane Korczak, deputy leader in KAD, to the paper.

Steen-Lynge Pedersen, media contact, said to TV 2 Nettavisen that he was very pleased with all the attention the campaign has received. He stated that the ad is a parody of the Danish paper Ekstra Bladet’s skimpy dressed model on page 9.