Helsinki (7.6.2019 - Heikki Jokinen) The Union Congress of the Service Union United PAM (4 - 6 June) unanimously elected Annika Rönni-Sällinen as its new President. Ann Selin, PAM President since 2002, had already made it clear one year ago that she would not be running for re-election.
The trade unions are happy with the new planned government programme. The incoming PM Antti Rinne government published a general outline of its programme on 3 June.
The five party leaders participating in the negotiations to form a new Government released on Monday, June 3, a 193-page draft government programme. It promises cooperation in the labour market instead of confrontation which was one of the hallmarks of the outgoing right wing Government headed by PM Sipilä.
The Finnish Unions agreed in 2016 to sign up to an exceptional national Competitiveness Pact under heavy pressure from PM Sipilä’s right-wing Government. The pact added 24 hours onto annual working time and cut holiday pay for those working in the public sector by 30 per cent for three years.
The national labour confederations of Finland (SAK, Akava and STTK) are reopening their summer job information service. The service is open until the end of August. The free advisory service hotline is open between 09.00 and 15.00 on ordinary weekdays. Advice will be available in Finnish, Swedish and English.
The Finnish Electrical Workers' Union filed an offence report asking Police to investigate measures taken by 20 companies during the union backed overtime ban in February and March last year.
Trade union members are once again well represented among the members of the Finnish parliament. A majority of the MPs elected on April 14 most certainly belong to a union.
Finland will elect a new Parliament on Sunday 14 April. The campaign Nation of the Free is striving to get labour market issues onto the electoral agenda.
The fragmentation and precarisation of working life affects trade union membership, too. According to a new study union density has declined.
The Industrial Union has declared an unusual embargo on the Lapwall company. The reasons for this have their roots in the strike action that occurred last October.
The tripartite working group was unable to agree on new rules for unemployed jobseekers. The group was working along the lines of a so called activation model two, the Government proposal on the additional criteria jobseekers must meet to get uncut unemployment benefit.
Helsinki (21.02.2018 - Heikki Jokinen) Debate in the Finnish Parliament on the citizens' initiative to stop the so called activation model took a peculiar turn. At the beginning of the debate on the initiative signed by 140,944 citizen not a single MP from the Government parties turned up.
February 18 was the moment at which the average private sector employee earnings of this year surpassed a private company chief executive’s daily pay.
Helsinki (08.02.2019 - Heikki Jokinen) A total of 3,362 employees lost their jobs in private companies in Finland in the year 2018. This is practically the same figure as for the previous year, when 3,276 people were made redundant in the private sector. In 2016 the number of redundancies was 10,874.
Helsinki (30.01.2019 - Heikki Jokinen) Gross neglect is thought to be the reason for one death in privatised elderly care and this has created a major debate in Finland. However, trade unions have been warning about these problems for a long time.
Five main Finnish labour market organisations are touring the country together to launch a broad debate on working life issues in advance of the parliamentary elections on April 14. All three trade union confederations will take part, as well as two major employers associations.
Gender equality has become far more prevalent among trade unions in Finland. A quick look at how their boards are composed is evidence enough. In many unions the share of women and men on boards mainly reflects the membership, with few exceptions.
Helsinki (20.12.2018 - Heikki Jokinen) Only 30 per cent of the unemployed have been able to meet the new criteria to get uncut unemployment benefit under the amended employment security legislation, according to a survey conducted among 6,000 members of unemployment funds run by the unions belonging to the Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions SAK.
Helsinki (07.12.2018 - Heikki Jokinen) Labour costs in Finland were, on average, 34.2 Euro per hour in 2016, according to Statistics Finland in its Labour Cost Survey published in November 2018.
Helsinki (22.11.2018 - Heikki Jokinen) A trade union movement working party called Itset has published a list of goals to improve the situation of self-employed workers.
The trade unions are ready to accept the tripartite proposal for an amendment to the Employment Contracts Act concerning the disputed dismissal paragraph. In practise the amendment will not change anything. Industrial action is over now, too.
The trade unions have interrupted their ongoing acts of industrial action to negotiate with the Finnish Government on their new proposal for labour market legislation.
What the strike means? This page provides answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs).
The Trade Union for the Public and Welfare Sectors JHL is continuing its political industrial action, in opposition to the lay-off bill. The union’s Executive Committee has decided to initiate a political strike on 22 October. The duration of the strike is two days and it will impact cleaning, property maintenance, food services and sports and culture services.