Helsinki (29.06.2021 - Heikki Jokinen) Akava will cease its involvement in the Labour Institute for Economic Research PT and focus on its own research, done by their think-tank Akava Works.
Akava, the Confederation of Unions for Professional and Managerial Staff in Finland is one of the three trade union confederations in Finland. Since 1993, all three - together with several trade unions - have been members of the support association of the Labour Institute for Economic Research PT.
The Institute’s roots go back to 1951 when the People’s Market Research Institute started as the first research institute of the Finnish labour movement. Since 1974, after some reorganising, the Institute has been an independent body supported by an association with several member organisations.
In 2020, PT had 27 employees and an annual budget of 2.6 million euro. Out of that amount, the contribution of the unions and confederations was 719,000 euro. The rest came from various other sources by way of support for research projects as well as a state subsidy.
Akava Works is the Akava research unit and think-tank that started in April 2018. It produces several reports and surveys annually.
"Our advocacy is based on research and, in quite a short time, Akava Works has reached an established position in the Akava community", says Akava President Sture Fjäder in a press release. Akava Works focuses especially on the social and labour issues that are important for those with an academic education and for members of the Akava unions, Fjäder says.
"We will continue cooperation with the Labour Institute for Economic Research, but in a different way." Akava will also commission more research and reports outside its own organisation. It has already teamed up with several partners in a major project on well-being at work, Fjäder says.
Akava Board made the decision to leave the support association of PT in June and the membership will end formally from the beginning of 2022.