JHL’s Union Council has decided on next year’s budget and membership fee, year 2025 will be busy with collective agreement negotiations

The membership fee and the trade union’s finances sparked a lively discussion in the autumn meeting of Trade Union JHL’s Union Council, and the Council voted on the membership fee. In 2025 JHL will negotiate a great number of collective agreements and do much work to attract new members.

Trade Union JHL’s Union Council has approved the operational plan and budget for the year 2025 and decided on next year’s membership fees.

The combined membership fee of the trade union and the unemployment fund will rise slightly

The JHL Unemployment Fund’s membership fee is going to rise to 0.4% next year. This means that the total combined membership fee of both the trade union and the unemployment fund, which has been 1% this year, will be 1.1% next year.

The total membership fee rises slightly as a result of the rising unemployment fund membership fee.

The trade union’s membership fee sparked a lively discussion in the Union Council, and the Council had to vote on the decision. The end result was that the trade union’s membership fee is going to remain at 0.7%, which is the same as this year.

Lowering the trade union’s membership fee was also proposed, but this motion lost the vote. The motion was proposed by Päivi Rantanen and seconded by Joni Leppänen and Jarno Strengell.

The Union Council furthermore decided that JHL’s membership fee ceiling will be removed next year. JHL’s Executive Committee proposed keeping the fee ceiling, but Union Council member Merja Viinikainen motioned that the membership fee ceiling should be removed. The motion was seconded by Marja Sirkka-Ahonen. The argument for removing the membership fee ceiling was fairness.

Trade Union JHL’s Director of Finance, Anna Karjalainen, told that the overall picture of the trade union’s finances has changed, and the situation is more difficult than before.

– In the past we have had good years when the accounts showed a lot of profit thanks to money from our investments. Next year and during the remainder of the Union Council’s term of office the trade union’s revenue will not cover the operating expenses, Karjalainen says.

In practice JHL spends more money than it can collect as membership fees. Assets need to be sold to finance the operations. Next year’s budget is negative, and the bottom line of this financial year is expected to show a deficit as well.

– We aim to take steps for balancing the operations and finances already in 2025 so that membership fees would cover a larger portion of ordinary operating expenses, says Karjalainen.

A massive round of collective agreement negotiations ahead

JHL will negotiate in 2025 new collective agreements for almost all members.

The first negotiations start already in 2024, and a large number of collective agreements will come to an end in spring 2025.

This is going to be a laborious round of negotiations because the Government of Finland has made a number of legislative amendments in the interest of the employers. JHL has a solid experience in conducting negotiations, and we will also maintain a close contact with other SAK-affiliated trade unions during the negotiations.

JHL members can participate in the planning of negotiation goals already in 2024. We want to achieve in the negotiations improvements to our members’ pay and working conditions. Other important goals include for example improving protection against dismissal, which has been undermined by the Government.

The future of services is at stake in the county and municipal elections

Two elections that are extremely important for JHL members take place in April 2025. Trade Union JHL wants to raise topics that are important for employees in the county and municipal elections. The best way to accomplish this is to have many JHL members standing as candidates.

One of JHL’s most important goals in the upcoming elections is to ensure that municipalities and wellbeing services counties have enough skilled workforce. Employers need to take care of their existing employees and attract new employees as many of the current ones retire. Succeeding in this requires that pay, working conditions and management and leadership are in order.

Our trade union also wants to bring election goals that are important for employees to coffee break discussions in workplaces. You will decide in the county and municipal elections what kind of leaders wellbeing services counties and municipalities will have: will they drive cutback policies or invest in services and citizens’ wellbeing? Be sure to vote.

JHL will work to bring in more members

JHL wants that in future even more people join our trade union. That requires industrious member recruitment efforts and visibility both online and in workplaces.

In 2025 JHL also seeks to attract even more employees who have an immigrant background to join our trade union.

Immigrants are an important and growing member group for us. JHL organises many kinds of activities around Finland through its immigrant networks, and JHL Institute offers training in English as well.