Trade Union News from Finland
Tekijä (17.12.2025 - Heikki Jokinen) Members of the Industrial Union welcome foreign colleagues, as long as their terms of employment follow Finnish standards and regulations. So say almost nine out of ten in the union members' panel.
In September 2025, the union commissioned an open members' panel survey for all members in working life. A total of 3,877 people joined up to share their opinions.
"Work-based immigration is acceptable as long as Finnish working conditions are complied with", is one of the statements the panel members were asked to evaluate. 87 per cent agreed or strongly agreed with the statement. Only five per cent strongly disagreed, and six per cent disagreed.
- Members accept workmates who come from abroad. However, union members have placed some conditions on this, says Timo Nevaranta, the Head of Public Relations at the union.
Tekijä (05.11.2025 - Heikki Jokinen) Many people believe that Finnish public mid-week holidays with pay are based on legislation. Wrong. The only paid day off by law is Independence Day in December. All other public mid-week holidays (arkipyhä) with pay exist thanks to the collective agreements made by the trade unions.
During the course of a year, there are a maximum of eleven such public holidays that may take place on weekdays, not on the weekend. The number of such days varies from year to year.
Depending on the collective agreement, the mid-week public holiday is usually a free day. This is invariably the case for those with a monthly salary. They get their normal salary and a day off.
Tekijä (13.08.2025 - Heikki Jokinen) Shop stewards are a crucial part of the union. They are the people the union members trust with their everyday problems. They are the people who are there to ensure that workers' rights, collective agreements, and laws are respected in the workplaces.
In every workplace, covered by an Industrial Union collective agreement, employees can elect a union member as their shop steward (luottamusmies). The elections are held every two years. Any union member can be a candidate in his or her workplace, and all members have the right to vote.
The tasks of a shop steward are to negotiate, make agreements, settle disputes, and channel information between the employees and the employer. To this end, the collective agreements guarantee training, remuneration, and paid time off for these tasks. In companies with more than 400 employees, a shop steward is a full-time job.
Tekijä (11.06.2025 - Heikki Jokinen) The Act on Co-operation within Undertakings is a law that seeks to encourage continuous dialogue in order to develop a long-term relationship between the employer and employees at work. It serves to enhance the culture in which both employees and employers co-operate by respecting each other's rights and responsibilities.
In 2022, the law was amended. This law strengthened the right of employees to make proposals and present alternative solutions in the change negotiations regarding layoffs and redundancies.
Now, the right-wing Orpo-Purra Government has rewritten the law, only three years after it was enacted. New rules will be valid from the beginning of July. Unsurprisingly, the new law has been reconstituted only for the benefit of the employers. For workers, it might mean a loss of thousands of euros.
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