Get involved

Branch actives run the branch. They organise meetings, training and events and are involved for example in organising strikes.

There are many roles in branches. These may include for example chair, vice chair, secretary, treasurer, spokesperson, person in charge of youth activities, school agent, and event organiser.

Getting involved in the operations of your own branch is easy: Contact your union branch or simply go to its meeting. Tell that you wish to participate more. There is something to do for everyone depending on your interests and skills. If you don’t know which branch you belong to, you can check that at myJHL.

How does recommending membership work?

When your friends join JHL, they need to write your membership number in their membership application form in order for us to reward you. You can check your membership number from your membership card or by logging in to myJHL and viewing the number under Member information > Personal information.

Remember to ask your friend to add your membership number in their membership application form.

Awards for recruiting new members

You will receive 30 points for each new member who pays a membership fee, and 12 points for each new student member. Points for fee-paying members will be recorded in the member recruiter’s information when the first membership fee has been paid. Points for student members are recorded immediately.

What kinds of awards are there, and how many points do I need for them?

We offer a great variety of Bonus Awards, including for example gift products and cinema and restaurant gift cards.

Remember to view also the Bonus Awards rules.

Check out the entire selection of JHL Bonus Awards here!

You can log in with these test credentials:

username: JHLtesti
password: JHLbonukset2025!

Log into the JHL Bonus Awards website to check your points and order a Bonus Award right away. The points in JHL Bonus Awards are updated once a month.

If you have any problems with your member recruiter points, please send a message to kannustimet@jhl.fi.

The points can only be exchanged for JHL Bonus Awards.

The rules of the incentive system are available on the JHL Bonus Awards pages under Rules.

Every JHL member can become a member recruiter, anywhere and at any time, and we do not need a separate notification about it. You can recommend JHL membership for example to a friend from school, co-worker, relative, neighbour, or to someone else you know.

A shop steward

• represents JHL and functions as a contact person at the workplace.
• monitors that workplaces comply with agreements and laws
• helps with questions that concern the employment relationship
• negotiates with the employer
• works together with other personnel representatives

Could I be a shop steward?

If the list below describes you, you would make an excellent shop steward!

• You know well the daily life of your workplace.
• You want to listen to the views of your co-workers.
• You want to represent the employees and support them.
• You want to give advice and help in employment relationship matters.
• You want to improve things in your workplace.
• You want to pass on information.

JHL gives its full support to shop stewards in their duties. You don’t need to have any knowledge in advance because we will train you. You will also get advice from JHL’s regional offices, central office and lawyers when needed. You have opportunities to network with other shop stewards.

In brief: If you are interested in becoming a shop steward, contact your local union branch or JHL’s nearest regional office. They will tell you more.

A more detailed explanation of how shop stewards are elected:
The employees elect a shop steward either in the branch’s autumn meeting or in an election meeting. Shop stewards are elected for a minimum of two years and for a maximum of four years.

The election is organised by the union branch board, or if the employees of a workplace are members of several branches, then the branch boards organise the election together.

If there are several candidates, an election committee is selected to organise the shop steward election. Before the election, the number of shop stewards needs to be agreed with the employer and the employee groups (division) represented by each shop steward need to be determined.

An occupational safety and health representative:

• represents employees in OSH matters, such as handling employees’ initiatives or resolving problems, and in OSH inspections
• works together with the OSH manager, occupational health services and other OSH parties
• familiarises themself with the conditions of the workplace and the state of the workplace community through workplace visits, statistics and reports
• familiarises themself with occupational safety and health legislation
• draws employees’ attention to safe ways of working
• contributes to influencing matters and changes that directly impact employees’ safety and health
• participates in the planning and implementation of risk assessments
• participates in creating shared principles and rules for the workplace
• participates in developing OSH matters further in the workplace
• monitors that the agreed measures are implemented
• keeps OSH matters on the agenda by making proposals and being active and proactive
• interrupts dangerous work
• cooperates with other OSH parties and personnel representatives.

A deputy occupational safety and health representative manages the representative’s tasks when the representative is prevented from doing so. The occupational safety and health representative must inform the employer if they are unable to perform their duties, and that the duties will be transferred to the deputy representative.

The representative (and two deputy representatives) must be elected in workplaces with at least ten employees. However, if the employees wish, they can elect an OSH representative amongst themselves even in smaller workplaces. The representatives are elected through an OSH representatives’ election held in the workplace. The election is organised by the OSH manager.

All employees have the right to stand for election in OSH representatives’ elections and to vote in the election of their workplace’s OSH representative. The representative’s term is from two to four years, depending on the agreement sector.

In the municipal sector, in parishes and in many private sector workplaces the OSH representatives’ elections usually take place in October–December.

As an OSH representative, you will get continuous occupational safety and health training from us. You can also be actively involved in OSH cooperation with various parties.

Many workplaces organise OSH representatives’ elections in autumn 2025. Nominate yourself as candidate!

At our material bank you can download a poster that encourages people to stand for election.

The OSH representative is entitled to obtain from the employer information that is needed for carrying out the OSH cooperation duties.

The right to obtain information includes the right to

• gain access to documents and lists concerning OSH which the employer is required to maintain or which the employer has in their possession
• gain access to the agreement on arranging occupational healthcare or a description of the occupational healthcare arranged by the employer and the occupational healthcare action plan
• receive copies of these documents if that is needed for carrying out the duties.

The employer must ensure that an OSH representative and deputy representative have the opportunity to receive the training that they need for carrying out their duties. The need for training and arranging the training must be discussed within two months from the election of the OSH representative.

The representatives attend the training during working hours, unless otherwise agreed for example in the applicable collective agreement. The training must not result in costs or loss of income for OSH representatives and deputy representatives.

Occupational safety and health representative’s time allocation

The employer must release the OSH representative from their regular duties for a reasonable amount of time that the representative needs for carrying out the OSH representative duties. Releasing the representative from their regular work duties can only be refused temporarily and for a valid reason.

The employer must make it genuinely possible for the OSH representative to carry out their duties as an OSH representative. The Act on Occupational Safety and Health Enforcement and Cooperation on Occupational Safety and Health at Workplaces contains a detailed list of factors that should be considered when determining the time that the representative needs for taking care of the OSH duties.

The de minimis clause requires that if at least ten employees work regularly in the workplace, the occupational safety and health representative representing the group of employees exposed to the greatest hazards or risks shall be released from their regular work for taking care of representative’s duties for at least four hours during each period of four successive calendar weeks.

Compensation for loss of income

The employer shall compensate OSH representatives for any loss of income incurred due to taking care of representative’s duties during working hours and pay a compensation for an OSH representative’s necessary duties carried out outside working hours.

The employer shall provide the OSH representative with facilities that are necessary for carrying out their duties. The OSH representative is entitled to use the workplace’s office equipment and communications equipment for performing their representative duties.

Read more:

OSH representative, election of OSH representatives – the Centre for Occupational Safety
Frequently asked questions about election of occupational safety and health representatives – the Centre for Occupational Safety
Occupational safety committee – the Centre for Occupational Safety
Occupational safety ombudsman – the Centre for Occupational Safety
Occupational safety manager – the Centre for Occupational Safety
Occupational safety personnel register – the Centre for Occupational Safety

The Union Council is elected for five years at a time. Every JHL member can nominate themself for election.

The current Union Council’s term is 2022–2027. When the Union Council’s term approaches its end, we will inform about the upcoming elections in our channels and instruct how you can stand for election.

Each union member has the right to vote in the Union Council elections.

JHL’s Union Council assembles twice a year in spring and autumn meetings to decide about matters that are important for the union. These include the strategic plan, budget and approval of the financial statements. When needed, the Union Council will assemble in extraordinary meetings to process negotiation results of the largest collective agreements (the municipal sector, state, church, and the private social sector).

The Union Council’s duties are specified in the union rules. According to the rules, the duties are:

Selecting

• the Union Council chair and two vice chairs amongst themselves
• the union’s president and two chief executive officers
• the members of the union’s Executive Committee and a deputy member for each
• an audit firm that audits the financial statements.

Deciding on

• the union’s strategic plan and long-term plans
• the fees of Union Council and Executive Committee members
• granting the Executive Committee discharge from liability
• the amount of the membership fee
• the amount of the membership fee refund paid to member branches
• the action plan
• the budget
• approving national collective agreements and their essential changes
• other matters presented by the Executive Committee.

Monitoring

• the union’s operations and financial management.

Confirming

• the election rules for electing the Union Council.

Investigating and resolving

• possible complaints made about matters mentioned in union rules.

Processing

• the initiatives put forward by member branches and organisational members
• the union’s annual report
• the financial statements.

The new Union Council selects the members of the Executive Committee in its first meeting.

Before the meeting, council members of the regions negotiate on the selections of Executive Committee members so that the composition of the new Executive Committee will represent all trade union members as well as possible. The goal is to find a composition that reflects the union’s diversity of regions, genders, occupational sectors and collective agreements.

A person cannot be a Union Council member and an Executive Committee member at the same time.

If a Union Council member gets selected into the Executive Committee, that member is therefore considered to have resigned from the Union Council. A new member is called into the Union Council to replace the member who has been selected into the Executive Committee. New members are called in the order of who got the most votes in the Union Council election.

Regional groups proactively gather information about their region’s change projects that are linked to protection of interests, union activities or social advocacy. They also evaluate and develop operational models for the region’s branches for dealing with those change projects, and evaluate the effectiveness of actions.

Regional groups’ operations are purposeful and organised by the regional office. The operations are carried out together with the region’s actives and the regional office.

A person cannot be a Union Council member and an Executive Committee member at the same time. If a Union Council member gets selected into the Executive Committee, that member is therefore considered to have resigned from the Union Council. A new member is called into the Union Council to replace the member who has been selected into the Executive Committee. New members are called in the order of who got the most votes in the Union Council election.

How the members are selected varies from one region to another. Get in touch with your head of region, who will tell you more about your regional group’s activities and selection of members.

Every member of JHL is welcome to join an occupational sector forum. To find the right forum for you, visit the page of your occupational sector.

We organise training for our school agents on a regular basis. The agents also get together annually in agent academy days, where they share experiences and hear new tips and ideas. To find more information about events, visit our course and event calendar (in Finnish).

JHL pays school agents an hourly fee for lectures or for managing an entrance hall info stand. The lecture fee is €30/hour, and the entrance hall info stand fee is €15/hour. As a rule, travelling to the destination and back is remunerated based on the fees of the least inexpensive means of public transport. Compensations for possible lost earnings are decided on a case-by-case basis and are based on actual loss of earnings proved by a certificate of loss of income that is received from the employer.

It’s great that you are interested! Contact our Union Activities Specialist Anni Järvinen: anni.jarvinen@jhl.fi / 050 5129 882

When you become a solidarity ambassador of your workplace or branch, you can campaign, distribute information, and make a difference in promoting proper working conditions in developing countries, too. You choose how much or little you want to participate. We inform the ambassadors about current topics and organise various kinds of events and courses from time to time.

We work closely with the Trade Union Solidarity Centre of Finland SASK, Fairtrade Finland, and Finnwatch. Other partners that we work with include the Nenäpäivä Foundation and Fingo, an umbrella organisation of numerous Finnish civil society organisations.

Our solidarity ambassadors also have their own Facebook group.

Sign up as a solidarity ambassador by sending an e-mail to solidaarisuus@jhl.fi. Include your contact information, language skills, union branch and workplace in the message. If you are a student, let us know in your message what you are studying and where. Then we will get you started.